KUALA LUMPUR, July 30 — The government’s plan to limit the access of foreign cars to the local market is a regressive move for the growth of the country’s automotive industry, the Malaysian Automotive Association said.
Its President, Datuk Aishah Ahmad, said there should be a level playing field for local and foreign carmakers, as many of these foreign cars carried a lot of local components and provided business and employment opportunities to the locals.
“It is a very regressive move. I don’t think it’s right for the government to say that they want to stop all cars other than Proton to be brought into the country,” she told reporters after a meeting with the Council of Eminent Persons here today.
She said for the local automotive industry to move forward, the government must create a conducive environment through liberalisation like in Thailand and Indonesia. [...]
She also urged the government to review its plan for another national car, saying it would disrupt the local industry which only had a small market with a total industry volume of about 600,000 a year.
“What we don’t want is further incentives being provided for the new national car, which will really disrupt the industry. It does not help the industry at all,” she explained.
“Thailand is exporting more than 1.3 million cars a year and Indonesia more than 100,000 vehicles. What is Malaysia exporting? Twenty to thirty thousand units a year,” she noted.
Its President, Datuk Aishah Ahmad, said there should be a level playing field for local and foreign carmakers, as many of these foreign cars carried a lot of local components and provided business and employment opportunities to the locals.
“It is a very regressive move. I don’t think it’s right for the government to say that they want to stop all cars other than Proton to be brought into the country,” she told reporters after a meeting with the Council of Eminent Persons here today.
She said for the local automotive industry to move forward, the government must create a conducive environment through liberalisation like in Thailand and Indonesia. [...]
She also urged the government to review its plan for another national car, saying it would disrupt the local industry which only had a small market with a total industry volume of about 600,000 a year.
“What we don’t want is further incentives being provided for the new national car, which will really disrupt the industry. It does not help the industry at all,” she explained.
“Thailand is exporting more than 1.3 million cars a year and Indonesia more than 100,000 vehicles. What is Malaysia exporting? Twenty to thirty thousand units a year,” she noted.
But Aishah Ahmad must understand Mahathir's obsession with cars.
Guan Eng once told Mahathir that there is NO money in the piggy bank for a new national car project; his so-called government claims the previous BN government has incurred a Trillion ringgit debt; the Malaysian public is against it; but the one-man-cabinet has sounded HIS intent to plough ahead with his wasteful expensive (from previous experience) car hobby, and to fCks with economic-marker logic.
Proton-Geely should develop a hybrid or electric car as the next National / ASEAN car. TDM will bincang with Li Shufu during the upcoming visit to China. Geely has the technology. China is the world’s largest electric car market, bigger than USA or EU.
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