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    Malaysia could still face bankruptcy, Idris Jala warns

    By Debra Chong

    KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 1 — Datuk Seri Idris Jala said today that Malaysia could still become bankrupt within a decade if it spends borrowed money on operational expenditure such as subsidies instead of investing the cash.

    “If our economy grows less than four per cent... and we don’t cut our operating expenditure, if we borrow at 12.5 per cent, if our annual debt rises to 12.5 per cent and our revenue does not grow, then it will happen,” Idris said today after announcing the latest investment updates for the government’s economic transformation programme (ETP).

    The performance management minister triggered alarm bells with his controversial bankruptcy forecast last year.

    Malaysia’s national debt rose by 12.3 per cent to over RM407 billion last year, according to the Auditor-General’s latest report released last week.

    Although the economy grew by 7.2 per cent in 2010, last year’s fiscal deficit maintained public debt at over 50 per cent of GDP for the second year running.

    The Auditor-General said in the report that the government owed 53.1 per cent of GDP, slightly down from 53.7 per cent last year.

    Economists have also said the country’s economic growth could slow to just 3.6 per cent next year from a projected 4.3 per cent this year due to the increasing risk of a double dip global recession.

    Idris said today that Malaysia will not go through a recession but will suffer an economic slowdown as a result of the ongoing financial crisis in Europe spreading.

    He also said his forecast did not mean Putrajaya should stop borrowing.

    “We should borrow money provided the money is spent as investment rather than as operating expenditure,” he said.

    “We must make sure our borrowing is in proportion to investment,” he added.

    Subsidies are among the government’s biggest operating expenses.

    The CEO of the government’s Peformance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu) said bankruptcy could be avoided even if the GDP falls below the targeted six per cent a year as long as it can increase its revenue collection.

    Idris said that the country’s population has grown to 28 million but highlighted that only one per cent was currently paying income tax.

    He said one of the ways to raise revenue was to implement the goods and services tax (GST).

    He added that the GST would also help make the country globally competitive, noting that 140 other nations have already done so.

    “If we do that, it propels competition. Sooner or later, we’ve got to implement GST,” he said.

    He said the government has proposed the consumption tax but was unable to carry it out due to objections from the opposition Pakatan Rakyat pact.

     

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    151 comments

    • Sam  •  6 months ago
      He is short of mentioning corruption and abuse of govt funds.
      • Cabal 6 months ago
        How could he mention that ? Wouldn't him lose his job , his family threaten by thugs ? or worse still even being detain under ISA for being a threat to national security ?
      • MaryamJameela 6 months ago
        sam,
        u r so funny... hahahahahaha... ur mind is of anwar's.. GO TO HELL
      • anon 6 months ago
        Auditor General mentioned the wastefulness few days ago. Its not a secret anymore, Audit have the evidence.
    • 1Malaysia Patriot  •  6 months ago
      No nation will be spared of bankruptcy when leaders and the wealthy do not spend wealth for people. Mostly they spend for themselves, a lot on futile ends or they resort to hoarding. Wealth are hoarded in the name of funds and banking instruments whatever, to create more wealth systematically to enrich ony the few. Few leaders will emulate or follow the True Way of Life that Allah has decreed. The true way have been shown and spoken by all His Messengers from day one. For instance, all His Prophets a.s.w. spent their wealth or whatever they had for the good of the mankind. But few learned, muslims included, will talk about this. It is Allah's decree that all leaders especially the wealthy must spend ALL their wealth for the public. All His Holy Messengers a.s.w. and the faithful followers did not hoard wealth. But do we hear the learned encourage wealth owners to give away hard-earned profits to their workers? Every worker has a fundamental right to business profits of the organisation that employ them. There are so many instructions on how wealth must be spent in His Book. Look at the lives of all His Messengers. They are the masterpieces of true social justice. There are a thousand things on Allah's Messengers way of life that the learned, muslims included, do not speak about. How can they preach national security, let alone justice and prosperity to mankind when they themselves are yet to practice and personify.
      • Durian 6 months ago
        That is why Pas called such as psuedo-Islam. Kelantan is much better off!
      • unwanted 6 months ago
        They fill their belly with fire my friend as they continue to use people money for their own use. Their unethical conduct is the main reason why they have been branded as not qualify to lead this nation
    • Jimmy  •  6 months ago
      One day when our natural resouces is depleting, Malaysia will need ah long to survive.
      • Cabal 6 months ago
        Ah long also run to other country because common malaysians will be too poor to pay back the loans.
      • anon 6 months ago
        you mean IMF biggest loan shark in the world
      • angry bird 6 months ago
        haha..ah long cannot la..they will spread red paint to our house and door if we don't pay
    • Kemana kite  •  6 months ago
      Scru Driver worth 5 rggt bought at RM50.ball pen worth 60 cent bought at RM10. why should be bankcrupt. ministries overspend.. including the Malaysian Anti Corruption Co.(MACC) also overspend.. where goes the MONEY..!!??. byk betul kakitangan kerjaan ni MAKAN DUIT HARAM...!! ps tu bg makan anak2 dri sumber HARAM tu.anak2 jd anak setan.. jgn ada BERSIH 3.0 pulak dah..
    • MISS THOR  •  6 months ago
      this prove that bn only knows how to spend money, not generate.how to vote for them?
      • Qunchitz 6 months ago
        can generate votes
      • unwanted 6 months ago
        They dont know how to do balance sheet they only know how to spend but dont know how to increase income for malaysia. for them income means income tax only.
      • Carlos 6 months ago
        1. Our revenue funds our opex with some balance to spare.
        2. Borrowings only for investing in revenue development
        3. Malaysia never borrow for opex or subsidies. otherwise we go bankrupt 10 years ago. Idris Jala talking nonsense for you guys to believe
    • Manggy  •  6 months ago
      Datuk Idis, an average Malaysian can understand what it means by revenue, borrowing , investment, returns, but what baffles everyone is who is going to close the BIG HOLES in the Govt?. Leaking pipe will not hold any water Datuk.
      • Insan 6 months ago
        Yes, the problem is not the pipe but the piping system.
    • hardyyboyy  •  6 months ago
      Didnt Jala read AG's report on how 5ministries spent their money? A hammer which RM10 is bought for RM500. Tats money(tax peyers or borrowed money we dun know) well spent.
    • patrick  •  6 months ago
      ALWAYS POINT OUT WITHOUT SOLUTION, WARN WHAT F?
    • what the ****  •  6 months ago
      What you expect when govt agency buys binocular for rm50K...horses that never used...of course we will go bankrupt....and these things happen year in year out...and no actions taken....tired and sick of this.
    • stagong  •  6 months ago
      Lain pula yang klua kat Buletin Utama malam kelmarin. Pemutar alam btl lah ...
    • ww  •  6 months ago
      a good homemaker can manage better than all the ministers we have curently
    • Tan  •  6 months ago
      Thank for the call. Corruption money won't led a happy life. Disasters or mishaps will eventually comes to you or your love ones sooner or later.You will depart without a cent in you pocket. Sorry for you guys.
    • Yonghup  •  6 months ago
      Glad you know that malaysia will bankrupt. Please stop spending money like to send useless monkey to space (It aint that much to proud of, just a laughing stock for other countries), Cut cost for building your magical palace for royalty ( Which there is no contribution for the country). Stop corruption!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
      Please invest the money in EDUCATION, TRANSPORTATION and GOVERNMENT INFRASTRUCTURE!!!!
      THEN MOST PEOPLE WILL WILLING TO PAY THEIR TAX!!!
    • robin s  •  6 months ago
      our loan with bank decreasing with the time..but our government loan are increasing..cakap pun tada guna..kita tengoklah PRU yang akan datang..
    • OrangAsli  •  6 months ago
      Stop all affirmative actions. Run the country on Meritocracy & Fairness and everything else will fall in place....start now before is too late.
    • Get Real!  •  6 months ago
      Idris Jala was merely stating the obvious by pointing out that Malaysia would face outright bankruptcy sooner rather than latter. However, he dared not point the finger at the main culprits - very corrupt and retarded UMNO-led Government and a handful of its cronies, such as former MB of Selangor Toyo, that bankrupted Malaysia by plundering taxpayers and rakyat's hard-earned money and the country's natural resources. The writing has been on the wall for over a decade. Only now, Idris started talking about Malaysia going the same way as Greece. In all likelihood, Idris Jala underestimate the severity and widespread of corruption and crooked system of pillage and the cover-ups using accounting shenanigans that had been going on over the past 54 years in Malaysia and that he too shall be caught by a big surprise one day when he wakes up to find out Malaysia going bankrupt in less than just 2 years from now!!! Wake up, people of Malaysia who slumber and lulled by con artists acting as wanabe politicians who plunder the economy and cheat the rakyat of the country every hour over 24 hours 7 days a week basis!
    • kps  •  6 months ago
      So much resources in our country and we still borrow.Tun Mahathir's efforts and progress on Nation building are brought to standstill and depleting. The ratings are bad, either drastic measures imposed or change government. Heir achy on PM succession should stop. Dr M should be called back as Adviser to the Government ...believe me ...it will work.
    • netizen  •  6 months ago
      Every working citizen must pay income tax. How did it come to only 1% only paying income tax. You mean the other 99% are not paying income tax? Granted maybe half of them are not working, retirees and children i think there is still a substantial number of population that is still working. I think every working adult is paying income tax except maybe that the deductions in Zakat and what have you are substantial enough to make the quantum looks like its only 1%. Maybe these should be still be considered as incomes but channeled for different purposes. The question then is are these other incomes used for nation building and investing? If yes, then it must also be accounted for. If no, then ask yourself why not?
    • henry  •  6 months ago
      At present situation,our country is poor but all top leaders & high ranking goverment servants are rich.
    • Farahan Aman  •  6 months ago
      I totally agreed with you Datuk. We are blessed by ALLAH that our country is so rich with natural resources and yet we have all the incapable leaders to lead the countries with strong self interest and created a huge hole leaking pipe in the government system and resulted Malaysia going into bankcruptcy status. Look at the our leaders in Parliament and Ministries talking, they sound uneducated and unintellect....wondering how can a country lead by Grade C leaders to growth....thats why we now getting worst......

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