Don’t be short-sighted, Najib says on cancellation of projects
Former prime minister Najib Razak said the government will regret the move later when the country falls into a state of stagnation.
PETALING JAYA: Former prime minister Najib Razak has warned the government against cancelling projects to focus on subsidies, calling it impractical.
He was responding to economic affairs minister Mustapa Mohamed’s announcement that the government is taking measures to save public expenditure by postponing or not continuing projects that have yet to commence.
According to Mustapa, this is to enable money to be channeled for the welfare of the people, apart from efforts to ensure the country’s economic recovery.
While Najib acknowledged that maintaining subsidies would provide relief to the public, he pointed out that it did not generate new income and job opportunities nor encourage new investments.
“Don’t be short-sighted. We will regret it later when the country falls into a state of stagnation,” he said in a Facebook post.
Cancelling projects, Najib said, is a “Pakatan Harapan approach” and has been proven to adversely impact the economy and hinder economic growth.
Najib pointed out that projects that lead to greater economic returns than the cost of debt interest or do not directly utilise the government’s annual budget funds should continue. He cited the Public-Private Partnerships and Private Finance Initiatives (PFI) as examples.
He also pointed out that government projects, especially those of significant size, require a long time to initiate and execute.
“So, when we cancel or postpone such projects it will take longer for the government to revive them, if necessary, to boost the economy when we face a recession,” he said.
Najib said that the government needed to be proactive in solving problems in the future and not just react to current issues.
PETALING JAYA: Former prime minister Najib Razak has warned the government against cancelling projects to focus on subsidies, calling it impractical.
He was responding to economic affairs minister Mustapa Mohamed’s announcement that the government is taking measures to save public expenditure by postponing or not continuing projects that have yet to commence.
According to Mustapa, this is to enable money to be channeled for the welfare of the people, apart from efforts to ensure the country’s economic recovery.
While Najib acknowledged that maintaining subsidies would provide relief to the public, he pointed out that it did not generate new income and job opportunities nor encourage new investments.
“Don’t be short-sighted. We will regret it later when the country falls into a state of stagnation,” he said in a Facebook post.
Cancelling projects, Najib said, is a “Pakatan Harapan approach” and has been proven to adversely impact the economy and hinder economic growth.
Najib pointed out that projects that lead to greater economic returns than the cost of debt interest or do not directly utilise the government’s annual budget funds should continue. He cited the Public-Private Partnerships and Private Finance Initiatives (PFI) as examples.
He also pointed out that government projects, especially those of significant size, require a long time to initiate and execute.
“So, when we cancel or postpone such projects it will take longer for the government to revive them, if necessary, to boost the economy when we face a recession,” he said.
Najib said that the government needed to be proactive in solving problems in the future and not just react to current issues.
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