All eyes on PH as deadline nears

> People appreciate what have been fulfilled so far: Political analyst

PETALING JAYA: All eyes are now on Pakatan Harapan (PH) as its first 100 days in office as the federal government is fast approaching.

Presuming the first of the 100 days was May 12 when Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad announced his core Cabinet lineup comprising three main ministries – Finance, Home and Defence – the 100th day is just six days away.

The bigger question remains how well, or poorly has the new ruling coalition fared so far.

PH took over a government that Mahathir and Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng revealed was laden with a RM1 trillion debt.

But true to their promises, and despite the heavy debt, the coalition zero-rated the goods and services tax (GST) almost immediately after.

And while on paper it may not seem a financially sound decision, it was a move that deserves applause.

“They fulfilled what was deemed by many to be the most significant of their manifesto promises. Although it (GST) is yet to be abolished officially, it is now zero-rated.

“And the rakyat felt the impact almost immediately. The people really appreciate it.

“The same can also be said about the move to retain the price of RON95 and diesel, despite the increasing global fuel price,” political analyst Prof Datuk Dr Mohammad Agus Yusoff told theSun yesterday.

The re-introduction of the sales and services tax (SST), which was passed by the Dewan Rakyat last week, is expected to be implemented by Sept 1 to replace GST.

To cushion the impact of a tax holiday (as the government waits to implement SST), the government has announced several major decisions including cancelling the MRT3 project, and reviewing the high-speed rail and LRT3 rail projects.

This was in addition to the setting up of a Tabung Harapan, that has since collected over RM170 million, in view of the public’s desire to help contribute to the nation.

PH has also started “cleaning up” the government, including removing political appointees and changing the top guards in several agencies that have been linked to or accused of protecting former premier Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak over his alleged corrupt practices.

This included the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, Bank Negara Malaysia and the attorney-general himself.

Najib has been slapped with multiple charges of criminal breach of trust, power abuse and money laundering, and assets linked to the 1Malaysia Development Berhad have either been brought back to the country or are being seized.

On parliamentary reforms, PH has also taken several moves in the right direction.