Thursday, November 6, 2008

Najib: Be prepared for tougher times next year

KUALA LUMPUR: Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak advised Malaysians to be prepared to face more difficult times next year.
Najib, who is also Finance Minister, said on Wednesday it was important for all Malaysians to work together to face the challenges that might come.
"I don't have crystal ball that can tell me what lies ahead but next year will definitely not be as good as this year.
"We (government) admit this and it means we are realistic.
“Because of our economy's inherent strength, we should be able to ride out the economic storm next year and if the external economy recovers, there is a possibility 2010 will be better than 2009.
Najib said this at a special interview with Radio Television Malaysia (RTM) on Wednesday on the fiscal stimulus package for Budget 2009 that was announced by him in Parliament on Tuesday.
Najib said cooperation for the government from the people, nongovernmental organisations, political parties including from the opposition was vital to meet the challenges.
He believed if this was done, it would be easier for Malaysia to weather the economic crisis the world was facing now.
On differing views about the stimulus package, he said the government, as a caring one, could not adopt a laissez faire attitude.
"This means we have to take intervention steps and proactive measures to avert negative consequences that will cause hardship to the people like reduction in spending power, retrenchment, lack of job opportunities and the like," he said.
He did not deny the recent drop in oil and commodity prices would exact a toll on the economy and, if the government did not intervene with the stimulus package, the overall economy might be even more badly affected.
He also said the government was credible in presenting facts because they had been studied in depth and scrutinised and could be substantiated.
He said international organisations would surely criticise the government if it had no credibility.
"We scrutinise the facts we present, we study them in depth and we can substantiate them," he said in response to a member of the interview panel who had said there were claims the facts he presented were incorrect.
On public transportation, Najib said there were many weaknesses and it needed to be brought under one management authority.
He said the proposed Public Transportation Commission would be able to look into the more holistic and comprehensive needs of the service in the cities, including Kuala Lumpur.
"In terms of public transportation, we have allocated RM500 million under the stimulus package for immediate improvement of the light rail transit system and bus services.
"This means that where we need to expand immediately, we will do that," he said.
However, he said, the RM500 million was not allocated to set up the commission.
Commenting on whether the stimulus package, which aims to raise the disposable income, would also be extended to non-salaried people, he said the RM200 million allocated for the microcredit scheme was for this category of people.
"This means there is an extension of the access to micro credit. Therefore, small traders are also given consideration in this fiscal stimulus package," he said.
Farmers and fishermen had ongoing programmes by the Agriculture and Agrobased Industry Ministry, he said. Asked of the possibility of the government reducing the number of migrant workers, he said the government had such an objective in mind.
He said the Industrialised Building System (IBs) could reduce the number of workers by 60 per cent. - Bernama

tunku : agreed, we malaysian,must be prepared for tougher times ahead of us but above all the government should be prepared to the fullest and protect our economy.government must not spend unnecessarily.cut down expenses especially during functions etc.show to the rakyat that you means business.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Salam...
Dalam menghadapi krisis ekonomi yang bakal melanda, Najib menasihatkan rakyat agar bersedia dengan kemungkinan-kemungkinan yangbakal mendatang dan mungkin lebih teruk dari tahun 2008. Walau bagaimanapun, rakyat tidak boleh hadapinya tanpa ada sokongan dan kerja kuat dari kerajaan. Ia perlu seiring supaya rakyat berasa masih selamat walaupun terpaksa mengharungi krisis ini...

Anonymous said...

from the hearsay that i heard,Malaysia gonna face a serious economic breakdown next year most probably.don't know if that's true or not.but just in case we should be prepared by now.save up all you can.dont overspend your money.

Unknown said...

jangan hanya setakat mengingatkan rakyat untuk bersedia berdepan dengan hari-hari yang mendatang,kerajaan pun perlulah juga bersedia bersama rakyat mengariskan apa jua pelan dan tindakan susulan yang perlu dilakukan takkala krisis melanda.

Anonymous said...

Every people see Parliment shows of quarrelling, we shake our head. It is time that both sides use their head and actions to show some positive works to the people whom elected them. we only short of figthing each other like in Taiwan Parliment.
Wonder how many MPs know the tough life, fears and hardship people out there , they are strugling, they are desperate, they are like ants on the Hot pan. Future is bleak.
I had many many coffee shop stories to tell, which one come first? I had no motive, I think as a nation, as a good leaders, we must instil a good spirit, a good sense of unity and wise strategies to put people together . When people are hungry, when they are no more money to spend, when they are out of jobs, when they are jobless, they give no damp to any future promises, they want to have food on the table for their family members. They want to survive.
1st thing 1st...People must work hard. They must have jobs to do. With millions of F.workers and millions of overstayed migrants in our work markets, hawker, night markets...no chance. 2nd. Clean up our envirnoment. Today another nurse 40+ die of Dangue. There many rubbish bugs, blocking drainage...Everywhere rubbish are on the ground, every corner. If singaporean can do it, why can we stop throwing rubbish. Especially migrants concentrate areas, worst. We cannot pay sweepers every hours and they habits just won't change. Let's do it hard. 3rd. Money must flow. Every one , especially rich must spend money that flow into the system. Smart traders whom line up alone the spending route always survive. But can Govt. create more?
Stop collecting $ from overstay migrant, will you, Mr Policemen.

Anonymous said...

Ini lah masanya untuk Najib membuktikan dia mampu untuk menangi pelbagai masalah yang dihadapi kerajaan.