PRICES of goods have stabilised and Malaysians should already have adapted to the 6% goods and services tax (GST), two years after its implementation, Prime Minister Najib Razak said.
“We can’t allow the free market to determine the prices and that is why the government has to step in and assist the consumers. The notion that the cost of living has risen because of the GST is not true,” he said.
The prime minister said consumers should already be well adjusted to the 6% tax after two years, today at the launch of the Sentuhan Rakyat and Biz Fair Sales and Carnival in Kota Kinabalu.
Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Hamzah Zainuddin, Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman and state cabinet members were also present.
The opposition has pledged to abolish the GST if it comes into power.
Najib said out of the 167 countries that has introduced the GST, only Malaysia exempted 578 items from the tax.
Najib said revenue from the GST would be returned to Malaysians via the BR1M cash aid and in the growth of the country.
“This year, around RM6.8 billion has been set aside for the cash handout, of which close to RM600 million is for Sabah, up from RM564 million previously.
“If the government doesn’t implement the GST, the Malaysian economy cannot grow and as a result the government cannot assist the people if the economy is weak,” he said.
Najib said the GST also allowed the government to create jobs and launch projects such as the Pan Borneo Highway, which will not be collecting toll.
On the sales carnival, Najib said the government would hold the programme twice a month in Sabah, where the prices of essential goods sold were 5-20% cheaper than market price.
The carnival is organised by the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry and the Companies Commission.
Najib also announced a RM5 million allocation to the Companies Commission’s Biz Fair programme to provide selected start-ups with a RM3,000 grant to buy equipment.
Earlier, Najib paid his last respects to Resources Development and Information Technology Minister Siringan Gubat who died of a heart attack last night.
Najib is on a two-day official visit to Sabah. He is expected to launch RTM’s new channel, TV Okey, and attend a groundbreaking in Kiulu, Tuaran, tomorrow. – March 21, 2018.
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Comments
Posted 8 years ago by Leslie Chan · Reply
the implementation of gst has hampered growth
Posted 8 years ago by Satkunabalan Sabaratnam · Reply
Posted 8 years ago by TuanLin Ooi · Reply
Posted 8 years ago by Sam Ng · Reply
Posted 8 years ago by Meng Kow Loh · Reply