Andrew Sia
Published: Jul 6, 2025 11:21 AM
Updated: 1:21 PM
COMMENT | Forcing people to pay more for imported mangoes, guavas, and bananas while not doing enough to curb waste and corruption is politically tone-deaf.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim should know better, since the slogan “Barang Naik” (inflation) over GST helped topple BN in 2018.
It’s doubly dumb when there is a better alternative - a modest two percent wealth tax on just the 50 richest Malaysians.
This would raise more than jacking up the sales and service taxes (SST) upon millions of locals.
A better name for a “wealth tax” is a “Robin Hood” tax - taking a little from the hyper-rich to help the dirt poor.
Published: Jul 6, 2025 11:21 AM
Updated: 1:21 PM
COMMENT | Forcing people to pay more for imported mangoes, guavas, and bananas while not doing enough to curb waste and corruption is politically tone-deaf.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim should know better, since the slogan “Barang Naik” (inflation) over GST helped topple BN in 2018.
It’s doubly dumb when there is a better alternative - a modest two percent wealth tax on just the 50 richest Malaysians.
This would raise more than jacking up the sales and service taxes (SST) upon millions of locals.
A better name for a “wealth tax” is a “Robin Hood” tax - taking a little from the hyper-rich to help the dirt poor.
This was explained by former Klang MP Charles Santiago, “If you own RM100 million, a two percent wealth tax is only RM2 million. That’s just one less Ferrari. But RM2 million could fund 500,000 school meals. This is about priorities,” he said.
Malaysia’s richest 50 people hold RM380 billion in wealth, as the Forbes list reveals.
“Why tax bananas before mega-mansions?” asked Charles.
A simple 555 notebook calculation shows that two percent of their treasure equals RM7.6 billion, 50 percent more than the RM5 billion Madani hopes to get from raising SST.
PKR defends the rich?
So, it seems like a no-brainer to do a wealth tax. But here comes the kick in the head (and hopefully not below the waist).
Deputy Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Fuziah Salleh claimed the government would become “very unpopular” if it raised taxes on the nation’s richest people and redistributed the wealth to others.
Fuziah Salleh
Although she oversees “cost of living” policies, Fuziah doesn’t seem to understand simple math.
Only 50 mega-rich Malaysians would be “upset” by a Robin Hood tax, while 35 million people living in Malaysia would rejoice!
That translates into lots of votes for the Madani government, not becoming “very unpopular”. Can’t Fuziah come up with a more intelligent excuse?
If she had done a simple Google search, she could have claimed, as a discussion by accounting giant KPMG noted, that a wealth tax has some issues, such as how to value certain assets or the emigration of the super-rich.
Even then, these are debatable. While not all hidden assets can be found or taxed, at least some can.
For example, the MACC can still go after the late Daim Zaimuddin’s publicly known assets such as Ilham Tower in Kuala Lumpur.
Although she oversees “cost of living” policies, Fuziah doesn’t seem to understand simple math.
Only 50 mega-rich Malaysians would be “upset” by a Robin Hood tax, while 35 million people living in Malaysia would rejoice!
That translates into lots of votes for the Madani government, not becoming “very unpopular”. Can’t Fuziah come up with a more intelligent excuse?
If she had done a simple Google search, she could have claimed, as a discussion by accounting giant KPMG noted, that a wealth tax has some issues, such as how to value certain assets or the emigration of the super-rich.
Even then, these are debatable. While not all hidden assets can be found or taxed, at least some can.
For example, the MACC can still go after the late Daim Zaimuddin’s publicly known assets such as Ilham Tower in Kuala Lumpur.
Tragically, Fuziah’s weak rejection of a wealth tax reveals the real agenda of the PKR-led Madani government - to defend a micro minority of ultra-rich people.
This is like Donald Trump doing a reverse Robin Hood in his latest “Big Beautiful Bill” - cutting healthcare and food aid to the poorest Americans while giving over US$3 trillion to tycoons in reduced taxes!
Rafizi revelations
This has given ammunition to people like Perikatan Nasional chief Muhyiddin Yassin to accuse the Madani government of behaving like the evil Sheriff of Nottingham in making more SST tax raids on the peasants (the rakyat).
This, he claimed, has torn the mask off the government’s “Robin Hood masquerade”.
All this is a far cry from the great calls of reformasi by Anwar against the elites in 1998. What caused this change?
Former PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli claimed that the party had been infiltrated by money politics, with outsiders “buying their way” in.
Rafizi Ramli
He lamented that money, fancy hotel stays, and tudung (worth several hundred thousand ringgit) were being used to buy members’ support.
Rafizi said rich tycoons can now influence PKR elections with the D-word: “donations”. This is the same dirty word that former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak used to justify the 1MDB scandal.
Where is this money coming from? Is PKR becoming Umno 2.0?
Trump repaid the “investment” of his billionaire backers by giving them juicy tax cuts. Is Anwar trying to imitate that?
Anwar the Cukaiman
As the jacked-up SST rolled into action on July 1, people will have to pay more for local hairstyling and beauty services, apart from imported fruits.
Construction and rental services will also be slapped with an SST hike, which will most probably be passed on to consumers.
On July 1, electricity bills were also raised. Next will be petrol price hikes as RON95 subsidies are withdrawn.
Perhaps that’s why Anwar is now portrayed sarcastically as our new caped crusader superhero called “Cukaiman” ie, the Taxman.
He lamented that money, fancy hotel stays, and tudung (worth several hundred thousand ringgit) were being used to buy members’ support.
Rafizi said rich tycoons can now influence PKR elections with the D-word: “donations”. This is the same dirty word that former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak used to justify the 1MDB scandal.
Where is this money coming from? Is PKR becoming Umno 2.0?
Trump repaid the “investment” of his billionaire backers by giving them juicy tax cuts. Is Anwar trying to imitate that?
Anwar the Cukaiman
As the jacked-up SST rolled into action on July 1, people will have to pay more for local hairstyling and beauty services, apart from imported fruits.
Construction and rental services will also be slapped with an SST hike, which will most probably be passed on to consumers.
On July 1, electricity bills were also raised. Next will be petrol price hikes as RON95 subsidies are withdrawn.
Perhaps that’s why Anwar is now portrayed sarcastically as our new caped crusader superhero called “Cukaiman” ie, the Taxman.
I wrote one year ago in my article, “Don't use diesel savings to support leaks elsewhere”.
Yes, we understand the need to endure higher prices if it’s for the “greater good” of the country.
But we get upset if the money is wasted elsewhere by the government in bloated contracts or to bail out Sapura Energy.
In the 2023 Auditor-General’s Report, 86 out of 217 federal subsidiaries reported losses totalling RM2.81 billion. Why not audit them and close the non-viable ones, saving billions?
As P Gunasegaram pointed out, there are thousands of GLCs where management and political patronage are “particularly bad” if not outright corrupt. Certain politicians are benefitting from this.
Anwar himself has endorsed the culture of political appointments saying they are a “reward” for those who have served a political party.
Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh then said the Madani government has finally “understood” Umno’s way of doing things. This was probably the worst “praise” that a “reformer” could ever get.
Dr Akmal Saleh
The bottom line is - why tax mangosteens, pineapples, mangoes, langsat, and longans imported from Thailand to pay for wastage by GLCs?
A better solution is a tiny two percent tax on the hyper-rich. Surely they can afford to sacrifice some luxury watches or yet another mistress to help our country in its hour of need?
If they are unwilling, then Anwar should impose this “national service” on them.
He must become a real superhero - no, not Cukaiman but Robin Hood.
The bottom line is - why tax mangosteens, pineapples, mangoes, langsat, and longans imported from Thailand to pay for wastage by GLCs?
A better solution is a tiny two percent tax on the hyper-rich. Surely they can afford to sacrifice some luxury watches or yet another mistress to help our country in its hour of need?
If they are unwilling, then Anwar should impose this “national service” on them.
He must become a real superhero - no, not Cukaiman but Robin Hood.
ANDREW SIA is a veteran journalist who likes teh tarik khau kurang manis. You are welcome to give him ideas to brew at tehtarik@gmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment