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Sunday, October 5, 2014

Ahmad Maslan praises Najib as only PM to lower fuel prices

Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan, tweeting under the handle @ahmadmaslan, says in the past, fuel was cheap and there were not that many cars on the road. He was defending the fuel subsidy cut which resulted in a 20-sen rise in petrol and diesel prices. – Twitter pic, October 5, 2014.Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan, tweeting under the handle @ahmadmaslan, says in the past, fuel was cheap and there were not that many cars on the road. He was defending the fuel subsidy cut which resulted in a 20-sen rise in petrol and diesel prices. – Twitter pic, October 5, 2014.
As Malaysians adjust to higher petrol prices and brace for higher inflation, Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan is by far the most active minister in taking to Twitter to defend the fuel subsidy cut.
In several postings since October 1, when the fuel subsidy was reduced by 20 sen, Ahmad, using the handle @ahmadmaslan, said Datuk Seri Najib Razak was the only prime minister who had brought down fuel prices.
This was the one time fuel prices went down in 2009.
The text in the graph read: “In the past, fuel was cheap and there were not that many cars = RM2 billion year on fuel subsidies”.
This was followed by another phrase which explained that the government was now spending RM2 billion a month because there were too many cars and that fuel was expensive.
The clincher came at the bottom together with a highlight of the price of fuel on September 1, 2009, which dropped to RM1.80 per litre. Next to this figure is a phrase that it went down by 90 sen.
“Najib is the only prime minister to have brought down fuel prices. When it came down did anyone thank him for doing so? Are there? Or are people acting like they forgot?”
RON 95 petrol went up by 20 sen to RM2.30 a litre on October 1 while diesel is up to RM2.20 per litre.
The rise in price was after the government decided to cut back on fuel subsidies, which according to Ahmad, would total RM21 billion this year.
Another tweet on October 3 showed that fuel prices in Malaysia remained the lowest in Southeast Asia.
In a graph, Ahmad showed that at RM2.30, petrol in Malaysia was the second lowest among eight countries, including Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, China and Singapore.
The graph titled “comparison of fuel prices among several countries” was accompanied with the text: are our petrol prices expensive?
He also tweeted that the government was still subsidising RON 95 petrol and diesel, which according to the market would be RM2.58 and RM2.52 respectively.
Ahmad, who is also Umno information chief, has been the most active Cabinet member defending the subsidy cut.
A cursory glance at the Twitter accounts of other ministers and politicians active on social media showed they either ignored the news or re-tweeted the announcement of the hike.
The few, who have publicly defended it, include Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Hasan Malek, who said the increase in petrol price was "minimal" and that the government would announce measures in the Budget 2015 to cushion the impact of higher fuel prices.
A day after the subsidy cut, Hasan said these measures included an increase in BR1M (1Malaysia People’s Aid) handouts, education aid, housing subsidies and other tax incentives.
Gerakan Youth chief Tan Keng Liang had also tweeted the day after that Malaysia’s fuel prices were among the lowest in the world.
“Our RON95 petrol is still one of the cheapest in the world. This is a fact,” Tan’s post said.
In an editorial today, government news wire Bernama also argued against maintaining high fuel subsidies, claiming that it mainly benefited those who drove larger engine-capacity cars and have high consumption patterns.
The article also argued that savings from cutting subsidies could be ploughed back into direct cash aid to the poor.
“If RM2.4 billion were to be saved with a 10 sen reduction in fuel subsides, we could use the ‘savings’ to increase BR1M payments by some RM960 million.
“Or an additional RM200 per household for the 4.8 million households who deserve it.
“For those who claim this isn’t enough to offset the increased price of fuel, it’s worth bearing in mind that these households don’t drive around in fuel-guzzling cars,” the editorial said.
It also said Malaysians must learn to live without subsidies as they were an “astronomical” burden to the country and deprived investments in education, healthcare and infrastructure.
“Generally, subsidies should be targeted and employed for specific problem-solving and promote behavioural change, rather than serve as a long-term crutch, which then becomes even more problematic and undermine the economy.
“At the same time, cheaper fuel breeds waste and discourages investments in alternative energy.
“As a natural resource, there is a finite amount of petroleum that we have. What happens once we run out of petroleum resources? The consequences are unimaginable.
“Isn’t it better to start living without subsidies now, rather than postpone it to that inevitable day?”
- TMI

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