Malaysians are restless for change. The question is whether this will be a change to win the future with integrity in leadership or change back to the past where we see our children’s future stolen as ours were stolen by corruption for the past 50 years.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has expressed confidence in winning the next general elections by sweeping all states in leading BN to 14-0 victory. If he and BN succeeds, Malaysia would suffer the 5Ds of Deficits, Debts, Deceits, Dictatorship and brain Drain.
BN is now in a state of arrogant hubris following the success of its cash handouts and using money politics to buy popularity. Penang PR accepts the possibility that BN can snatch power by hook or by crook at the 13th general elections.
However, the implications of a 14-0 victory would have serious repercussions for Malaysia, especially worsening corruption leading to higher deficits and debts that can only be brought about by greater repression and dictatorial powers. Police brutality unleashed against peaceful demonstrators during the Bersih rallies have resulted in a loss of public confidence in the independence of the police, who are perceived as willing political tools of a dictatorial BN government.
Presently corruption has deteriorated with Transparency International ranking Malaysia at No. 60 in the Corruption Perception Index compared to No. 37 in 2003. Instead of giving out loans to farmers who breed cows, the family of a Minister who has never reared a cow is given RM 250 million loan, which is misused to buy condos. We can see some of the worst excesses in Sarawak where wealth controlled by families of state government leaders are openly flaunted.
Clearly rampant corruption can only be permitted by BN’s deceit and dictatorial powers which will lead to an even larger brain drain. Since Merdeka in 1957, more than 2 million Malaysians have left the country. The recent change in Australian work visa policy that allows Australian graduates to stay back in Australia for 2-4 years will only accelerate the brain drain.
BN’s recent RM13.8 billion 2012 supplementary budget will add on to the projected RM 45.9 billion projected deficit in the 2012 budget, resulting in a total deficit of RM 59.7 billion, the highest in Malaysian history. This would easily put Malaysia’s deficit as a % of GDP at more than 6% in 2012, which is significantly higher than the initially projected 4.7%.
The fiscal irresponsibility of the BN government is proven by the fact that the additional funds will be spent on the extra RM 1.5 million allocation to BN MPs from this supplementary budget while non-BN MPs including those from Pakatan Rakyat will be given nothing. The strategy of going to the taxpayers to fund more of its irresponsible spending habits is not something new for the BN. BN requested for an additional RM 13.2 billion in June 2011 and an additional RM 10.3 billion in March 2012 for the 2011 Budget.
As of 31 March 2012, government debt stood at RM 470 billion. If we include the expected deficit from the 2012 budget, our government debt will easily increase to beyond RM500b by the end of the 2012. And this does not even include the worrying increase in the contingent liabilities that are not officially on the books amounting to nearly RM 110 billion. If contingent liabilities are added to official government debt, our debt would increase to more than RM 600 billion!
The last time this country ran a budget surplus was in 1997 when Anwar Ibrahim was the Deputy Prime Prime Minister. Since 1997, we have experienced 15 consecutive years of budget deficits, which is why we want Anwar as the new Prime Minister to turnaround the deficit budget into a surplus budget. Our government debt has increased by 5 times from RM 89 billion in 1997 to RM 470 billion as at March 2012 as compared to the increase in GDP by only threefold.
In contrast to BN’s dismal financial performance, PR state governments have recorded surplus after surplus every year and even managed to reduce our debts sustainably. Penang reduced our debts by a whopping 95% or RM600 million from RM630 million at 8 March 2008 to only RM30 million by end 2011. All this was achieved not by BN’s deceit but by straight talking of running a clean government based on CAT governance of competency, accountability and transparency. In comparison in 2011, Sarawak has a debt exposure of at least RM4.3 billion comprising of total direct and indirect debt to the federal government and private sector..
Clearly the system of open competitive tenders, disclosure of government contracts with the private sector, public declaration of assets certified by an international accounting firm and the passing of a Freedom of Information Act works in combating corruption. PR states like Penang have proven that a clean government can perform better than a corrupt government.
LIM GUAN ENG
—– Mandarin Version —-
民主行动党秘书长兼峇眼区国会议员林冠英于2012年6月24日在古晋发表谈话：
如果拿督斯里纳吉成功带领国阵在来届大选创下14比0的胜利，马来西亚将会陷入5D困境：赤字（Deficits）、债务（Debts）、欺骗（Deceits）、独裁（Dictatorship）及人才外流（brain Drain）。
马来西亚人迫不及待地想改变。问题是，这是不是一项能够赢得未来廉政的改变，还是变回跟从前一样，看着我们的孩子的未来被偷窃，就像我们在过去50年所遭遇的事一样。
首相拿督斯里纳吉已经表达了下届大选有信心横扫全部州属，创下14比0的胜利。如果国阵可以成功，那么马来西亚将会陷入5D困境：赤字（Deficits）、债务（Debts）、欺骗（Deceits）、独裁（Dictatorship）及人才外流（brain Drain）。
国阵在成功派发现金援助、以金钱换取欢迎度后，现在处于极度傲慢的阶段。槟州民联接受国阵可能在第13届大选不惜一切代价夺取政权。
但是，14比0将为马来西亚带来深远的影响，特别是在压制及独裁政权下，猖獗的贪污将导致更高的赤字及债务。警方在净选盟大集会粗暴地对付和平集会者，已经让公众对警方的独立性失去信心，他们已经被视为国阵独裁政府的政治工具。
最近我国贪污越来越严重，国际透明组织列马来西亚的贪污印象指数于第60名，2003年我们排名37。我国没有把贷款发放在养牛业者，反而是某部长的家人，不但没把应该养牛的贷款用来养牛，还滥用来买公寓。我们可以看到砂拉越的糟糕例子，砂州的财富竟然由州政府领袖的家族掌控。
很明显地，国阵的欺骗及独裁政权所纵容的贪污，将会让我们面对严重的人才流失问题。自1957来独立以来。超过200万马来西亚人已经移民了。最近澳洲新的移民政策，允许留学生毕业后留在澳洲2-4年，只会加剧人才外流。
国阵最近2012年的138亿令吉附加预算案，让2012年的预算案赤字459亿令吉，增加至总赤字597亿令吉，成了马来西亚史上最高的赤字预算案。这将让2012年赤字占国民生产总值的比率超过6%，比原本估计的比率4.7%还高。
国阵政府的理财态度可说是不负责任，这从国阵国会议员能够在附加预算案中，获得额外150万令吉拨款可以看出，而那些非国阵（包括民联国会议员）国会议员却分毫未得。国阵大花大用纳税人的钱已经不是什么新鲜事。它在2011年6月曾经要求额外的132亿令吉，2012年3月为2011年财政预算要求额外103亿令吉。
截至2012年3月31日，政府债务已达4700亿令吉。如果我们把2012年的预算赤字包括在外，政府的债务将在2012年底达5000亿令吉。这还未包括不要账目内的、让人担忧的或有负债（ contingent liabilities ）约1100亿令吉。如果把这些或有负债加入政府债务，我们的债务将会增加至6000亿令吉。
我国最后一次拥有盈余的预算案是1997年，当时安华是财政部长。自1997年，我国已经连续15年面对财政赤安。我国政府的债务从1997年的890亿令吉，增加到2012年3月的4700亿令吉。1997年到现在，政府债务增加了5倍，但是我国的国民生产总值只增加3倍。
比起国阵恶劣的理财记录，民联政府预算案不但年年有余，而且还有办法持续减少我们的债务。槟城政府成功将槟州的债务从6亿3000万令吉，减去95%，到了2011年底，债务只剩3000万令吉。这些都不是国阵欺瞒诈骗可以做到的，而是实话实说，推行能干、公信及透明的廉洁政府所做到的。在2011年，砂拉越的债务达43亿令吉，包括联邦政府及私人机构的直接和非直接债务。
很明显地，通过公开招标、公开政府私人界合约、由国际会计公司公布民选高官财产，在州议会通过资讯自由法令来反贪。民联政府如槟州政府已经证明，倡廉的政府，可以做得比贪污政府更好。
林冠英