GEORGE TOWN - Former Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng has called on the Madani unity government to approve more development projects under Budget 2024 to stimulate the economy in the face of global uncertainty.
Lim in a statement said that he had already written a letter to Prime Minister and Finance Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim over the matter.
He said he had urged for expansionary fiscal policies to offset the uncertainty in the global marketplace.
He said the government needs to focus on sustaining growth and curbing the rise in living costs, underlining that both are major challenges now.
"Any proposal to impose new forms of taxation should be differed for now, especially capital gain tax on sales from companies not listed in Bursa Saham Malaysia (stock market)".
At the same time, Lim suggested that corporate tax should be lowered to 20 per cent from the current 24 per cent.
Lim also said that first-time corporate tax on small and medium enterprises, where profit is only RM1 million per company should be retained at a rate of 15 per cent only.
To alleviate costs for human capital, Lim urged the authorities to go fully online in the registration of foreign labour to ensure transparency and no leakages.
Levies on foreign workers can continue but the highest figure should be placed on local employers, who hire more than 100 foreign workers.
For Penang, Lim, who is also the state's former chief minister, reiterated his call for a special financial zone (SFZ) to be set up here to inject more quality into the economy.
The zone can leverage the prospects that the country's services sector received investments of up to RM82.4 billion in the first six months of this year.
This accounts for 62 per cent of the overall investments approved by the country, which is RM132.6 billion, said Lim.
The SFZ can tap into the new investments to generate growth not just for Penang but for the entire northern region, Lim said.
He also called on Anwar to bring back the iconic double-decker cross-channel ferries, which can transport vehicles to alleviate the current congestion in the state.
"The ferries are nostalgic to the residents here so it should be repaired and conserved."
Lim also sought an allocation of RM93 million for flood mitigation efforts and another RM6.280 million to upgrade trunk roads in Butterworth. - The Vibes, October 11, 2023.
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