When I was Finance minister, I did NOT allow GST to go through - Anwar ticks off 'misleading' Najib

Prime Minister Najib Razak’s claim yesterday that I had agreed to the imposition of GST back in 1992 is both disingenuous and misleading.

Even then in Parliament I had made it explicitly clear that the GST must be carried out in a “transparent and efficient” manner and by that I had stated that certain pre-requisites must be met before implementation.

These included proper governance, transparency, no leakages and wastage, and safeguards against corrupt practices. I had also emphasized that the GST should start at a low level.

These pre-conditions not being fulfilled, that was why the GST was never implemented during my watch as Finance Minister.

Anwar Ibrahim is Opposition Leader & MP for Permatang Pauh