Ball’s in Pakatan court
(The Star) – Pakatan Rakyat has been challenged to explain how its populist policies which cost about RM200bil annually will not bankrupt the nation in two years if it were to take over Putrajaya.
The total cost to abolish tolls, PTPTN loans and car taxes, and ensuring each household has a minimum monthly income of RM4,000, is almost equivalent to the nation’s total annual revenue.
MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek, who threw the challenge, said the Opposition which had been evading the topic only gave credence to the belief that it was yet another empty promise to fish for votes.
“In fact, I have questioned the policies many times and they dare not rebut me. I posed the question to DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng at the first debate with him early this year and he just evaded it,” Dr Chua, who is also Johor MCA chairman, said when opening the party’s annual state convention here yesterday.
For a year, it will cost the Government RM50bil to abolish tolls, RM93bil to provide a minimum monthly income of RM4,000 to each household, RM43bil to abolish PTPTN and RM8bil to abolish taxes on cars.
“The Opposition’s battle cry – Ubah – is to bankrupt the country in two years and bring chaos to the country,” Dr Chua said, pointing out that Pakatan, which had been boasting of taking over Putrajaya, did not even have a proposed socio-economic model for the country.
Dr Chua said Pakatan had also announced its intention to make Johor the frontline state in the 13th general election.
He urged all voters in the state, including the 200,000 MCA members, some 700,000 Umno members and MIC members, to ensure victory for all Barisan Nasional candidates.
Dr Chua said DAP had misled the Chinese into thinking that they could be “kingmaker” when the party supported the Opposition.
“DAP is dabbling in racial politics,” he said, adding that Malaysia was a multi-ethnic nation that thrived on cooperation among all the races to ensure stability and development.
Dr Chua said DAP was a “hypocrite” that claimed to be a multi-racial party but instigated the Chinese with all sorts of claims.
