Tun M Tells M’sians to Be Prepared for Possible New Taxes After Budget 2019

Malaysians, you may want to brace yourselves for possible taxes that may be imposed by the government. 

The Star reported that in order to repay the massive debt left by the previous administration (Barisan Nasional), the people may need to be prepared to face more taxes.

According to our prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir, Malaysia’s debt mess has turned us from an “Asian tiger into a small kitten”. Therefore, new taxes may be introduced in order to raise our revenue to pay off the staggering debts.

Speaking to bankers and fund managers at an investors conference yesterday (9 October 2018), Tun M said the proposition of new taxes has been suggested to the current government. Nonetheless, he explained that the possible new taxes aren’t necessarily welcomed by the rakyat but we still have to pay our debts.

He was quoted as saying,

“I don’t think that (it) is something welcomed by the people but we may have to devise new taxes in order to have the money to pay our debts.”

Moving on, Tun M said that the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) from the welfare and well-being of the rakyat have “decoupled”, even though the GDP growth is fine. He said,

“The people suffered from a high cost of living, uncertainties, pressures applied by the then government, so much so that they no longer had faith in this country.”

Tun M suggested that the government can also sell some of its assets to raise funds for the debt repayment because, according to him, a government-owned land is an asset that can be sold.

However, Tun M explained that the previous government had already sold many government-owned lands to foreigners; nonetheless, he said that the government may need to sell off some of their valuable assets. Tun M also didn’t forget to note that the new taxes will not be a burden to the people. Well, it better not be!  

Following that, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng also reiterated Tun M’s statements by explaining that the rakyat must expect hard times and make necessary sacrifices because “fiscal consolidation” cannot be attained easily.

He said that that they would need three years to solve the fiscal issues caused by the RM1 trillion debt, the RM35 billion (from GST) and income tax refunds. Lim then assured that this can be solved, even though it will not be a smooth ride.

“This will not be easy, but I believe it can be done. After all, it is always darkest just before dawn,” said Lim.

He finally shared that the government, through the Tax Reform Committee (TRC), is looking to expand the tax revenue sources and review the tax incentives in order to create a more neutral, efficient and progressive tax system. Sounds good. 

This is a bit concerning, don’t you think? We hope that they will find a suitable solution to our national debt soon and quickly get us out of this financial crisis that we’re in currently.

Do you think the new taxes are necessary? Let us know in the comments below! 

 

Also read: Here Are Some of the Over 5,000 Consumer Goods That Will Not Be Taxed By SST