KUALA LUMPUR – Universiti Malaya’s Prof Edmund Terence Gomez has voiced concern about a “political agenda” behind Budget 2021, where a whopping RM11.1 billion is allocated for Bumiputera development.
The Economics and Administration Faculty dean told the varsity’s Post-Budget Analysis Webinar yesterday that it appears the government is catering to Bumiputeras in the event an election is called.
“They are going to target ethnic groups at a time when they should help all Malaysian companies. This is not the way to do it. In the past, when they did it, it didn’t work,” he said, referring to previous race-based interventions that benefited Bumiputera enterprises.
“Why are we still persisting with this, when it is a (time of) crisis? The only conclusion I can come to is that there is a political agenda.”
He said Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz himself acknowledged, in a New Straits Times interview, that 80% of Malaysian small and medium enterprises are owned by non-Bumiputeras.
Government figures from the previous Pakatan Harapan administration’s Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 (SPV 2030) showed that the majority of Bumiputera SMEs have less value added compared with those owned by other races.
“The government is clearly indicating to us that we have a dynamic non-Bumiputera SME base, and while we have it, one would think there would be a serious attempt to include the dynamic non-Bumiputera base along with the Bumiputera (base) to rebuild the economy at this time of crisis,” said Gomez.
“I’m also saying this because I’m very worried that when Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin became the prime minister, he appointed a lot of politicians as heads or directors of GLCs (government-linked companies). These are the very same GLCs responsible for transferring aid to SMEs.
“Bumiputera SMEs are underdeveloped. This is a clear admission of the SPV 2030. Tengku Zafrul said 80% of SMEs belong to the Chinese and non-Bumiputeras. That is the current structure of the corporate sector. But aid from the Budget goes to the 20%.”
Budget 2021 sees a 77% drop to RM177 million in allocation for the Chinese community, while Bumiputeras in total get RM11.1 billion for development programmes, up from RM8 billion this year.
Gomez, known for being critical of GLCs, said Malaysia is fortunate to have strong such firms to take the place of private corporations, which have been effectively locked down by the virus crisis.
He lauded Putrajaya’s decision to focus on the telecommunications sector and develop digitalisation, which will be critical in assisting economic recovery. – The Vibes, November 21, 2020
