Kelantan Umno wants AP policy retained

(Bernama) – Tanah Merah Umno division head, Ikmal Hisham Abdul Aziz today called on the government to retain the open Import Permit (AP) policy to enhance the capacity of bumiputera entrepreneurs in the automotive industry as the policy was proven to have created job opportunities for 78,400 bumiputeras so far this year.

He said although the number of cars brought into the country was low in terms of import volume, contribution of the bumiputera entrepreneurs in terms of tax collection had been encouraging.

“The government should not be influenced by the agitation that the purported move against abolishing the policy would only lead to the government being accused of ‘moving backwards’,” he said when debating the motion on the economy at the 2014 Umno General Assembly yesterday.

He said the majority of bumiputera entrepreneurs in the automotive sector were agents for Proton and Perodua national car companies as they faced difficulty in being appointed as agents for international car companies.