Tuesday, May 13, 2008

My First Supplementary Question!

(updated 5.56pm)

Hey, I got my chance for the first time to post a supplementary question during the Question hour! ;-)

I was actually quite surprised that there were very few interested parties on this issue, but shouldn't complain. I've been standing up and down for the past 2 weeks trying to get the speakers' attention, so I should just be grateful ;-).

The original question was asked by TENOM [Raimee Bin Unggi] asking the Minister of Finance to state:
...sejauh mana keupayaan Kerajaan dalam meningkatkan penggunaan swasta yang kini berada pada kadar 14 peratus berjaya mengimbangi pergantungan negara kepada ekspot.
Frankly speaking, the Deputy Minister of Finance who was deputising, Datuk Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah gave an answer that I barely understood, or rather was neither really here nor there. Will extract from the Hansard tomorrowm, but I managed to ask my supplementary question ;-)
Ekonomi Malaysia sekarang amat bergantung kepada penggunaan kerajaan ataupun "public sector spending", berbanding dengan negara-negara di Asia. Mengikut perangkaan daripada Merrill Lynch, sumbangan penggunaan keraajaan di Malaysia adalah sebanyak 24 peratus, berbanding dengan Taiwan 15%, Singapura 14%, Thailand 12% dan Hong Kong 10%. Pergantungan ekonomi Malaysia kepada sumbangan kerajaan adalah tidak sihat dan apakah langkah-langkah yang akan diambil oleh kerajaan supaya sumbangan penggunaan yang lain dapat ditingkatkan?

(More or less what I asked, as I did it off the cuff)
If only I could put up the slide on the chart as well in Parliament ;-)


I'll provide the Hansard records of what the Deputy Minister answered, but I can assure you that he didn't know what he was talking about, and hence didn't answer the question. Sigh.

(update) Got the transcribed version of his answers:
Apabila kita melihat dari segi GNP, kita melihat dari 2 sudut. Satu dari sudut output ataupun pengeluaran yang ini sumbangan dari sektor-sektor industri dan sektor-sekto industri sebagaimana kita maklum sektor perkhidmatan telah meningkat tinggi. Ini bermakna faktor key yang utama dalam pembangunan negara kita. Dari segi rancangan Malaysia, sektor perkhidmatan sekarang yang menymbang lebih kurang 53% kepada KDNK telah meningkat 59% pada tahun 2020 itu target negara kita.

Kemudian kita melihat dari sudut GNP dari sudut perbelanjaan. Perbelanjaan seperti mana yang saya nyatakan tadi, perbelanjaan swasta dari segi konsumer begitu tinggi iaitu pembelian dan pelaburan. Buat masa ini kita masih bergantung kepada kerajaan kerana kita sebuah negara ekonomi yang sedang membangun jadi kita perlu input-input kerajaan sebagaimana yang saya nyatakan tadi dalam RMK ke-9, kita belanja lebih kurang dalam RM40 bilion pada tahun 2007 dan seterusnya dalam koridor raya nanti kita akan laksanakan perbelanjaan lagi. Ini kita nampak perbelanjaan oleh pihak swasta lebih banyak dan tinggi berbanding dengan pihak kerajaan.

Di samping itu, kos ke 3 iaitu dari segi ekspot dan impot negara kita. Pada tahun ini, net ekspot negara kita hanya 0.7% dan ini dijangka akan level pada tahun hadapan kerana sepertimana kita tahu terjadinya re-section di dunia dan ia jadi leveling.
Make of it what you will ;-)

9 comments:

Bentoh said...

I doubt that the Timbalan Menteri knows what is public sector spending at the first place...

and maybe he did not expect you to jump from private spending to public spending? haha~

__mars said...

Haha! I like that question. Sounds like a question a minarchist libertarian definitely would ask!

Samuel Goh Kim Eng said...

The nation's economy is overdependent on the government
Since most of the wealth is in the hands of the government

Samuel Goh Kim Eng - 130508
http://MotivationInMotion.blogspot.com
Tue. 13th May 2008.

Anonymous said...

why malaysia economy dependant on goment spending?if not how those 'ulat-ulat' or 'broker' want 2 get their percentage on any goment's project?hehehe...if one project cost rm 20 mil and becoz of this 'ulat-ulat' the cost will be increase..thats why malaysia relies heavily on public sector spending.....

Anonymous said...

Hei YB, we expect you (our elite hero) to master the parlimen in all aspects (education, taxpayer money, expenditure, economics etc) in area you should be good. We want to hear more of you. Brain drain issue (apa langkah langkah kerajaan atau tindakan kerajaan) please you cannot afford to let us down. Education, u talk so much, sekarang macam mana? we want transparent how the goverment decides on the yearly intake, why quota, and bad courses given to good student. what is the criteria for bumi intake, etc etc etc. Tar college issues apa macam?

Anonymous said...

The answer should be emphasize more on how to solve the problem of our country's economy from over dependent on government's intervention. As we're taught that the economy should work by itself without government intervention. Though it is not 100% true, but minimum intervention from the government during certain situations or subjects are mostly welcome.

For this question, the deputy finance minister should explain that what the government should do to reduce their intervention in the economy in the short run and long run, such as privatization of government linked company or reducing the monopoly of GLC to encourage a healthy competition.

As for GNP, I think he make a serious mistake in replying the question. This has nothing to do with GNP as we are talking about the economy within our own country, not in other foreign countries.

Developing nation does not mean that government should involved at the business directly, but to provide infrastructure within the country and set fair policy to attract the investor and help to generate local businesses at the same time. The exemption for government to involve in some business is that such business require a huge amount of capital in order to run such as national airline.

Anonymous said...

Dear YB Tony,
I hope you can read the following message and bring this issue up to parliment. Thanks from the bottom of my heart!

----------------------------------
It's time to scrap the National Service.

I'm not the only parent who will not entrust my children to this worthless cause. It has proven to be unsafe since it was initiated. How many have died in the camps already? How many more have fallen ill?

Why must we sacrifice our children ... for what? It was a hare-brained idea to begin with. And yet despite the public resistance, the Government has insisted on carrying on with it.

Some who have gone through NS may have got something out of it, but many more detest it. But the upshot of it all is this -- if there are going to be cases of people dying while serving NS, it simply does not justify having it. If the Government cannot guarantee the safety of each and everyone of those serving NS, it should feel shame and stop this unsafe scheme.

I call on our elected representatives to speak up and earnestly press for the abolition of National Service.

I urge all parents to resist -- by refusing to send their children when they are called up for the next round of NS. Let this be a form of conscientious objection.

We must be together in this -- so that if the Government wants to persecute us for it, they will find it harder to persecute a mass of people than if it were only a handful.

I call on civil society groups to pledge protection for parents who resist should they be hauled up for persecution. Such protection could be in the form of free legal representation.

Let us show solidarity in standing up against what we don't have faith and trust in.


Sincerely,
Kee Thuan Chye

Anonymous said...

Dear Tony,
There is nothing wrong in massive government intervention in projects. However, such interjection of funds must translate into positive growth and influx of more FDI into Malaysia economy. I am not an economic expert. But I believe that government expenditure must boost other activities that would bring greater heights to the country.
Singapore is one heck of a good example

rajiv said...

Hi Tony,

What would be your answer to your question? What are your ideas in reducing the dependence on public spending?