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Minyak Oh Minyak…!

Letters
by Dr. ASM

Harga minyak kita jauh lebih murah jika dibandingkan dengan negara jiran. Kenaikan harga tak dapat dielakkan lagi. Rakyat digesa ubah cara hidup. Itulah antara kenyataan yang menguasai dada akhbar dimasa ini. Semua ini seolah-olah memperbodohkan rakyat Malaysia.

Harga minyak kita jauh lebih murah dari negara jiran, Singapura, Thailand dan juga beberapa negara lain. Jangan bandingkan harga kita dengan negara jiran yang bukannya pengeluar minyak. Bandingkanlah harga kita dengan negara pengeluar minyak lain (Iran(0.35), UAE (1.19), Arab Saudi (0.38), Venezuela (0.16), Mesir (1.03), Bahrain (0.87), Qatar (0.68) , Kuwait (0.67), Nigeria (0.32) dll). Jangan fikir rakyat Malaysia bodoh dan mudah diperdayakan dengan fakta dan perbandingan yang tidak tepat.

Rakyat digesa ubah cara hidup. Kita disuruh ubah, tapi pemimpin semuanya masih berkereta mewah. Kerajaan sepatutnya ubah cara berbelanja. Tangguhkan dulu projek mega. Tukar semua kereta mewah kepada Proton Perdana. Barulah cakap serupa bikin. Continue reading “Minyak Oh Minyak…!”

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Let the great battle to get Anwar back to Parliament begin

Anwar Ibrahim is reported yesterday as saying that “This year is a good timing for a by-election”, with some newspapers like Sin Chew Daily giving it page headline treatment.

I will go one step further. There is no better time than NOW for a by-election for Anwar to get back to Parliament in the wake of the nation-wide anger and outrage at the unconscionably drastic and hefty oil price increases of 41 per cent for petrol and 63 per cent for diesel with no overall plan to cushion their painful impact on the vulnerable sectors of the population.

There is also no awareness or consciousness of the need by the Abdullah government and leadership to set an example of radical change in lifestyles and government expenditures as well as to be fully accountable for the Petronas billions and to begin to institute good governance of accountability, transparency and integrity.

Let the great battle to get Anwar back to Parliament begin!

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Ensuring Our Oil Bounty Will Not Be A Curse

by M. Bakri Musa
www.bakrimusa.com

With Malaysia forced to end or at least reduce its petroleum subsidy, it is well to learn from the experiences of other oil-producing countries.

There are enough lessons in the world today on how we should manage our precious God-given oil bounty. Prudently done, as in Alberta (Canada) and Norway, it would bring peace and prosperity. Anything less and it would be a curse; the new wealth would breed corruption and tear the socioeconomic fabric of society, as seen in today’s Iraq and Nigeria.

I would rather that Malaysia emulates and enhances the Albertan and Norwegian models. Malaysia should, like Canada and Norway, remove all subsidies on petroleum products. This would encourage conservation. It would also prod Malaysians into the global economic reality instead of being insulated from it.

In order for this giant step to be accepted, the government must divert the savings into a separate trust fund for use by future generations when our oil would run out, with a small portion devoted for current use in subsidizing cooking gas for the poor, and users of public transportation. Continue reading “Ensuring Our Oil Bounty Will Not Be A Curse”