AFTER being battered recently over its lukewarm response to letting Parliament open again, Perikatan Nasional’s latest aid package, Pemulih, is expected to give the government some breathing space from the people’s anger, said political analysts.

They, however, warned that any relief will only be brief as most of the Pemulih incentives are just temporary measures and cannot restore PN’s credibility.

Universiti Malaya’s Prof Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi said the i-Citra scheme that allows depositors to withdraw up to RM5,000 from the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) and the loan moratorium are only respites as it is still the people’s money.

The RM300,000 allocation for all MPs to use for food baskets is also a temporary measure, he said.

“Food baskets are only a temporary measure, so the relief from public dissatisfaction will also be short.

“It is akin to feeding a hungry tiger. Once the food baskets are gone, the tiger will roar again,” said the Malay ethnic studies lecturer.

Awang Azman said the best thing PN has done through Pemulih is to give equal allocations to all MPs regardless of affiliation.

The Sarawakian said that although timely, Pemulih only gives a reflection of the government helping the people in difficult economic times.

“But in reality, Malaysians are using their own savings, such as withdrawing from EPF, to help themselves.

“The loan moratorium will only ease cash flow temporarily for six months as borrowers will still have to pay for the interest subsequently,” said Awang Azman.

After more than a month of total lockdown, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced his latest economic relief package, Pemulih, on Monday.

Although touted as a RM150 billion package, the government said it only has to inject RM10 billion through direct cash payments.

Overall, the PN government claims it has distributed RM380 billion through seven relief packages although the fiscal injection amounts to less than a quarter.

International Islamic University of Malaysia’s Dr Tunku Mohar Tunku Mokhtar said that from the sheer numbers, the RM380 billion aimed at 20 million Malaysians and 2.4 million businesses, look promising.

“There are also allocations for SMEs (small and medium enterprises) and jobs creation through entrepreneurial skill developments that could be beneficial for those who are looking for jobs or those who lose them during this lockdown.

“And the loan moratorium would temporarily help postpone financial burdens.”

But Tunku Mohar said this is merely a stop-gap measure and would not necessarily be helpful in the long run when borrowers have to bear additional interest payments.

He said the benefits from i-Citra are also debatable.

“This may further reduce their old age fund. There are already studies showing that the majority of EPF contributors have very little savings in the fund.

“Allowing them to withdraw from it will negatively affect their pension fund. Even the MTUC (Malaysian Trades Union Congress) is strongly against this.

“Policies that allow such withdrawals must be reconsidered. In lieu of that, the government should find other means to help those in need of financial assistance to get help without jeopardising their savings,” said the political science lecturer.

Last week, EPF chief executive officer Amir Hamzah Azizan told The Edge Weekly that 6.3 million out of 15 million depositors now have less than RM10,000 in Account 1, following the government’s i-Sinar and i-Lestari withdrawal schemes last year.

“It’s worrying that 42% of the total membership has less than RM10,000 and if you look at Account 2, which is the amount set aside where members can access in certain instances, 9.3 million people have less than RM10,000. So they’ve used their emergency funds,” Amir had said.

Tunku Mohar said that while Pemulih looks good on paper, people’s main grievance is the perception that the government looks directionless in addressing the pandemic.

“Most of the time, the government is reactive,” said the Kedahan.

Awang Azman hopes the government will focus on more long-term measures, instead of trying to be populists.

“It must look at how to ramp up vaccinations so that the economy can open again. At the same time, it must ensure that prices are kept in check,” he added. – June 30, 2021.