POLITICAL and social stability coupled with strong and wise leadership are among the factors that have to be in place to draw in investors, said Daim Zainuddin.

The other two factors are clarity of policies and respect for the rule of law, he added in an interview with The Malaysian Reserve.

“Without these four ingredients, we will have a tough time, and investors will run away. Investors’ confidence matters.

“We must remember that about 40% of investments in this country are foreign. Now is the time to court them.

“We know Japan is moving out from China, and so is the United States. Indonesia and Vietnam are working hard to entice foreign firms to relocate to their countries.

“America has decided to invest in Indonesia. We will be left behind if we are not serious. Even local investors will invest in other countries if we are not careful,” he was quoted as saying.

He warned that if Malaysia was not stable, with U-turns in policies, these investors will go elsewhere.

Daim then pointed out the recent confusion regarding the moratorium for car and housing loans.

“So many conflicting statements. Rule of law seems different for the rich and the poor, you steal a packet of Milo you end up in jail, but if you launder billions, you walk away a freeman,” he said, alluding to the government’s recent deal with Riza Aziz.

The stepson of Najib Razak was granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal for returning US$107 million of US$248 million in laundered funds linked to 1MDB.

The former finance minister also said the government must obtain first-hand information about the economic and business conditions in order to revitalise the economy.

He said that during the 1998 financial crisis, the National Economic Action Council met daily to track daily and weekly information and news flow on the ground.

It also engaged with various industry associations, chambers and economic sectors regularly.

“This was to provide prompt policy responses to ease the impact of economic disruptions on domestic households and businesses.

“You must have a plan and you must have a good team to implement the plan. You must have your short-term, medium-term and long-term goals.

“You must know how to carry out the implementation, how to monitor progress, how to adjust with changing circumstances and how to communicate with the rakyat about what is being done.”

He said the government must also remember that handling an economic crisis requires co-ordination and co-operation of all arms of the government.

This is not just the responsibility of the Finance Ministry, he said, adding that the whole government, all the ministries and all states must come together, and work in tandem.

“It will be difficult to focus on revitalising the economy if the government effort is also focused on other agendas, which can distract from the economic situation at hand.” – May 22, 2020.