KUCHING – Malaysia is now facing high inflation, yet prices of essential goods are increasing – which can only happen when the country’s economy is poorly managed, said Sarawak DAP chief Chong Chieng Jen.
“When a nation is undergoing a recession, prices of essential goods must not be seen to increase at the same time. If this happens, it does not make good economic sense,” Chong told reporters during a press conference at the party headquarters here today.
He said rising prices of essential goods during a recession mean only one thing – that the national economy is managed badly by the government.
“For instance, a 5kg bottle of Reiser cooking oil used to cost only RM17 in 2019 but now costs RM29.70,” he said. “The same also goes for a 5kg bottle of Knife cooking oil, which was RM27.90 in 2019 but has gone up to RM38.90 this year.”
Calling the situation a “double whammy” suffered by the people, Chong noted that the state government has the power to impose a sales tax, “one of the reasons for the aggravated price spikes”.
Chong is contesting the Padungan seat in the state election on Saturday.
Giving another example, he said that the state government is aggravating the current recession and bringing suffering to the people.
A former federal deputy minister for domestic trade and consumer affairs in the now collapsed Pakatan Harapan government, Chong said that his then ministry managed to control the inflation rate and even kept it at a manageable level of less than 1%.
He said this proves that proper management and policies can help reduce inflation for consumers.
Others present at the press conference were DAP candidates Dr Kelvin Yii (Batu Kawah), Violet Yong (Pending), Michael Kong (Kota Sentosa), and Abdul Aziz Isa (Batu Kitang). – The Vibes, December 16, 2021
