Budget 2018 reasonable, despite a few disappointments – KCGCCI

KUCHING: Budget 2018 has been termed as a good budget – one that provides for all communities including the Chinese, the Indians and the Orang Asli, as well as the women and families.

In this respect, Kuching Chinese General Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCGCCI) secretarygeneral Jonathan Chai lauds the government for continuing to provide RM50 million to Chinese small and medium enterprises (SMEs) through Koperasi Jayadiri Malaysia Bhd (Kojadi).

However, he also noticed that Chinese SMEs in Sarawak have somewhat shied away from applying for the funds – probably because of the four per cent charge.

On top of that, he acknowledges that Kojadi is under the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), pointing out that it should encourage Chinese SMEs in Sarawak to apply for the fund – if the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) could act as the handler.

“In fact, Kojadi came to Sarawak once to encourage Chinese SMEs here to apply for the fund but the response was not good. Perhaps, some people are still sceptical of it.

“It would be good if the government could either do away with the four per cent charge, or reduce the rate further to call for more applications,” he spoke during a phone interview yesterday.

Chai said KCGCCI welcomed the two per cent reduction for individuals earning annual income between RM20,000 and RM70,000.

However, he said most employers would be disappointed with the status quo of the corporate tax.