Govt to sell assets

KUALA LUMPUR: In an effort to pare down the national debt of RM1 trillion, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the government will pursue ways to raise funds, including selling some i ts assets and the possibility of introducing new taxes.

At the “Malaysia: A New Dawn Investors’ Conference” yesterday, Mahathir said the government will look at selling land and other “valuable assets”, but did not elaborate.

“Selling land to foreigners is not good for us, but we can still sell to locals for housing projects,” he said at the event hosted by the government with Maybank, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd and RHB Banking Group.

“This is the problem faced by Malaysia. Nevertheless, we are hopeful that we can manage all these problems and rebuild the government machinery which had been destroyed by the previous government.”

He said the new tax regime will be different from the current Sales and Service Tax, and be less of a burden to the people.

Mahathir also said many big foreign firms have expressed interest to invest in Malaysia.

“I believe, in time, they will come and they will contribute to the growth of this country. When growth is high, then the debt will not be so big. That is our hope,” he added.

An estimated 1,200 local and foreign participants attended the conference, which participants say helped restore public confidence in the new government ahead of Budget 2019 on Nov 2.

Saturna Sdn Bhd senior equity analyst Zahid Siddique said t he i nvestment environment in the country will improve over time under the new administration.

“The government has to work on creating a transparent environment. However, for some reforms, you need time. Over the medium to long-term, it will have an impact. We’ll have to see how the policy turns out.”

Another participant said the conference will benefit investors, especially foreign investors who have a “wait and see” approach, who are unsure of the government’s ability to improve the economic conditions here.

“I think the conference’s goal is to give these investors a clear view of the government’s future plans,” he added, while a third participant interviewed said the conference shows the government is serious about what it is doing, but clarity on policies is likely to only materialise on Budget day. STORY ON

AMIRUL SYAFIQ/THESUN ... Residents at the Sri Penaga Apartments in Puchong, Selangor, use buckets to fetch water sent by an Air Selangor tanker yesterday. The area was one of several that experienced water supply disruptions.