Guan Eng, what RM 6000?

Tony Pua and Lim Guan Eng (DAP) slammed the Government for not putting money into the pockets of the rakyat.

Lim Guan Eng proposed initially a plan of RM 6,000 annual oil bonus to all families earning less than RM 6,000 a month or RM 3,000 annual bonus to bachelors earning less than RM 3,000 a month.

This exercise will cost the Government RM 35 billion if considered and executed.

I don't know if the RM 6000 mentioned by Lim Guan Eng HERE is the same RM 6000 which he said HERE.

An annual oil bonus of RM 6000 does not mean putting RM 6000 cash in the pockets of the people. It is an annual oil bonus and thus it must be a form of direct aid for fuel consumption of RM 6000. Correct me if I am wrong.

Is that all Tony Pua and Lim Guan Eng can argue about from Najib's stimulus package?

Actually, retraining programs, business cost cuts and subsidies, infrastructure projects, scholarships, business and study grants and telecommunications improvement are also similar forms of aid to the people.

Engineers, electricians, plumbers, hardware traders, electronics sectors, telecom experts, management trainers, and businesses will have income and thus money to spend due to the projects.

From there, these people will spend on food, clothing and other necessities.
Fishmongers, hawkers and textile traders will then have enough money to pay bills, wages and consume goods and services in the economy.

The cycle goes on and on from there. Money circulation can be done through this way also.

Although Najib did not take DAP's proposal of that RM 6000 annual oil bonus plan, the stimulus package did something even better. The stimulus package will provide tax relief on interest paid on housing loans of up to RM 10,000 a year for three years.

This could free up the loan repayments of home owners and inject cash into the economy through consumption spending and savings.

By the way, CM Lim Guan Eng should compare the budget of Malaysia and Singapore in detail.


It seems to me Malaysia's stimulus package has similarities to Singapore's.

We have aid and grants to students, investment in infrastructure and transportation, business cost rebates, subsidies or tax cuts, retraining program, public sector hiring and many more.

Surprisingly, I don't know why Lim Guan Eng tells us to emulate Singapore when our stimulus package seems to be quite close to Singapore PM H.L. Lee's plans.


International Herald Tribune carried the story of Singapore's $ 13.6 billion package. Excerpts of the article are as follow:

Singapore's government unveiled a multibillion dollar plan to boost spending and cut taxes in a bid to ease the worst recession in the city-state's history.

The government will lower corporate taxes, subsidize wages, guarantee bank loans and spend more on infrastructure as part of the $20.5 billion Singapore dollars ($13.6 billion) stimulus package, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said Thursday in a televised speech.

The plan includes a 20 percent personal income tax rebate of up to $2,000 per worker and a range of other tax reductions.

The government will spend SG$5.1 billion to help companies avoid layoffs, highlighted by a cut of the maximum corporate tax rate to 17 percent from 18 percent.

It also plans to subsidize 12 percent of the first SG$2,500 of each employee's monthly wages, boost training programs, hike cash handouts to low-income workers by 50 percent, and increase public sector hiring.

The government will also assume 80 percent of the risk on private bank loans of up to SG$5 million to help spark lending and investment.

The city-state will also boost aid to welfare recipients, government pensioners and students, and invest SG$4.4 billion in infrastructure projects such as the subway system, roads, public housing, parks and military facilities.