We can’t allow market to dictate prices of goods, says economist
Economist KS Jomo says parties that monopolise the Malaysian market will dictate the prices of goods.
GEORGE TOWN: An economist has cautioned against allowing the market to dictate the prices of goods in the country after the removal of price control and subsidies for certain items.
KS Jomo said this was due to the presence of monopolies, adding that the Malaysian market was “too small, and it is not free”.
“We have certain parties that are monopolising (the market).
“If we let the market decide, those who monopolise the market will dictate the price (of goods). It is not (good) enough,” he said in a talk tonight.
He also called on the government to come up with subsidies that benefited the recipients, including for healthcare.
Jomo said Putrajaya should emulate India, where there was a subsidy for food materials, instead of cash, for those in the lower income bracket.
“This subsidy programme benefited the women because if they had been given cash, their spouses will use the money for cigarettes.
“The food items help them to make nutritious food (for themselves).”
Jomo also criticised the government for subsidising items like sugar which he said jeopardised the health of Malaysians.
He said the sugar subsidy contributed to high sugar consumption, which subsequently led to Malaysia being one the countries recording the highest number of diabetes cases.
Meanwhile, fellow panellist Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj called for a holistic approach to food production.
The focus, he said, should not only be on increasing food production but also on the preservation of farmlands and the sea.
He criticised state governments for being short-sighted by clearing farmlands and reclaiming lands to generate “revenue”.
“In Perak, farmers are being chased off their farmlands, and the lands are being sold off to developers to build factories and houses. In Penang, they (state government) are trying to build artificial islands,” he said, adding that such projects would affect the fishing industry.
He called for a moratorium on farmland clearance and reclamation to ensure that food production would not be affected.
GEORGE TOWN: An economist has cautioned against allowing the market to dictate the prices of goods in the country after the removal of price control and subsidies for certain items.
KS Jomo said this was due to the presence of monopolies, adding that the Malaysian market was “too small, and it is not free”.
“We have certain parties that are monopolising (the market).
“If we let the market decide, those who monopolise the market will dictate the price (of goods). It is not (good) enough,” he said in a talk tonight.
He also called on the government to come up with subsidies that benefited the recipients, including for healthcare.
Jomo said Putrajaya should emulate India, where there was a subsidy for food materials, instead of cash, for those in the lower income bracket.
“This subsidy programme benefited the women because if they had been given cash, their spouses will use the money for cigarettes.
“The food items help them to make nutritious food (for themselves).”
Jomo also criticised the government for subsidising items like sugar which he said jeopardised the health of Malaysians.
He said the sugar subsidy contributed to high sugar consumption, which subsequently led to Malaysia being one the countries recording the highest number of diabetes cases.
Meanwhile, fellow panellist Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj called for a holistic approach to food production.
The focus, he said, should not only be on increasing food production but also on the preservation of farmlands and the sea.
He criticised state governments for being short-sighted by clearing farmlands and reclaiming lands to generate “revenue”.
“In Perak, farmers are being chased off their farmlands, and the lands are being sold off to developers to build factories and houses. In Penang, they (state government) are trying to build artificial islands,” he said, adding that such projects would affect the fishing industry.
He called for a moratorium on farmland clearance and reclamation to ensure that food production would not be affected.
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