The Malaysian Insight

SOME 500 days since winning Putrajaya, Pakatan Harapan has performed satisfactorily given its lack of experience, said economists and trade associations.

They told The Malaysian Insight that the pact, despite not fulfilling all its polls pledges, has demonstrated a resoluteness to tackle corruption, as stated in its election manifesto.

But now that the honeymoon period is over, they warned, the window for PH keeping its word on all its promises is narrowing.

Highly anticipated are a comprehensive economic plan to tackle the huge national debt while improving the people’s welfare, creating high-income jobs, attracting quality investors and helping industries adapt to PH’s foreign labour policy.

Dr Yeah Kim Leng, Sunway Business School economics professor

“Given the magnitude of the scandal-ridden and debt-laden economy inherited from the previous administration, as well as the lack of experience of most PH ministers, the overall performance is considered satisfactory for the following reasons.

“First, it has won reasonably strong public confidence over its handling of fiscal matters, and efforts to rebuild trust, and maintain good governance and transparency. Second, besides making key judicial and other appointments that are generally viewed to be meritocratic and less political, the government has begun to tackle corruption relentlessly.

“Finally, it has remained market and business-friendly despite being tarred with the socialism brush in the early days.

“A notable highlight of the administration so far is the smooth political transition, which reaffirmed the country’s political stability. This enabled the economy and markets to function smoothly and sustain a commendable growth of 4.7% in 2018, as well as in the first half of this year, amid low unemployment and low inflation, with a slowdown in the global economy.

“PH was also able to make unprecedented tax refunds without jeopardising the country’s public finances.

“However, PH needs a comprehensive economic plan and strategies to differentiate itself from the previous administration in terms of development approaches, such as a shift from race-based to needs-based policies. This should be addressed in the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030.

“Effective implementation will be the key point on which the PH government is judged. Will it be able to raise more quickly the people’s living standards, reduce income and wealth disparities, and achieve developed nation status within the shortest time possible?”

Lee Heng Guie, Socio-Economic Research Centre economist and executive director

“Some of PH’s outstanding promises are on the National Higher Education Fund Corporation loan and the fuel subsidy mechanism. Hopefully, they will look into these matters in Budget 2020.

“If you go through their manifesto, a lot of things were proposed. They did not expect to win the elections, but now that they have won, they have to embrace reality. There are constraints in terms of budget and the balance sheet.

“So, they are trying to find a middle path. For example, the privatisation of tolls… people are waiting to see whether they can afford it.

“They still need time, but businesses and people have no patience.”

Soh Thian Lai, Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers president

“After 500 days, the PH government should have gotten better in terms of learning the ropes, and it is now time to execute their plans to invigorate economic growth and facilitate a business-friendly environment.

“This can be done by improving the country’s revenue by reducing the cost of doing business and making our industries globally competitive; improving the people’s well-being by increasing purchasing power and reducing the cost of living; improving confidence level by having more foreign direct investments, as well as direct domestic investments; and, improving institutional reforms by having more concrete anti-corruption measures.

“They should set a time frame for the implementation of their manifesto promises. They should also form a centralised and well-organised communications team to disseminate correct information to the public, and also to respond quickly.”

Shamsuddin Bardan, Malaysian Employers’ Federation executive director

“(There are) many glaring unfulfilled election promises, and these have eroded confidence in the government. Among them – the abolition of tolls? A lot of talk, but nothing has really happened.

“Reducing the cost of living? The consumer price index decrease is commendable, but the real cost of living has increased tremendously. Taking the price of ikan kembong as a benchmark, 500 days ago, it cost about RM15 per kg, and now, it is not less than RM25 per kg.

“Housing prices are still beyond the reach of the majority, and developers are now offering completed high-end units to foreign buyers. Employers are also left to shoulder the burden of higher minimum wage on their own, as the government has claimed there are no funds to provide subsidies.

“Building investor confidence is another issue. The private sector is not in a real position to create more jobs, let alone quality jobs. The government promised to create one million jobs within five years, but even the public sector has frozen new intakes, including for critical positions, such as dentists, doctors and pharmacists.

“They are given fixed-term contracts rather than full-time permanent employment. This, in turn, has impacted the confidence of private sector employers when it comes to taking in new employees, especially those with degrees and diplomas.”

Michael Kang, SME Association of Malaysia president

“The PH government has been serious about fighting corruption. The problem is, the operations of the administration still rely on old models and systems, which do not fully achieve the effect of preventing corruption.

“While the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission is working hard, corruption still happens in government agencies. Civil servants are the ones who implement government policies, not a minister. PH should be mindful of how it works with civil servants, as forced obedience can backfire.

“Ministers must communicate with civil servants. Ministers should not make a policy decision this week, and then change it the next week. If civil servants get confused, it will affect investors, and small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Businesses will not be able to comply with government policies.

“I do appreciate the government’s commitment to transform SMEs as we approach Industry 4.0. I would like to re-emphasise our foreign labour policy. Many enterprises have been relying on foreign workers for 60 years.

“The government should not cut out foreign workers immediately, but do so step by step, giving time to industries to adapt and transform. Many SMEs today, because of the lack of foreign workers and human resources, opt to expand to other countries. They do not dare to expand their investments domestically.” – September 26, 2019.