PUTRAJAYA: The Budget 2013
to be tabled by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak tomorrow is expected to see a
continuation of affirmative policies he had introduced since three years ago to
further enhance the quality of life of Malaysians, say officials familiar with
its formulation.
To ensure sustainable growth
and social progress besides exercising prudent financial management, the budget
will be “mildly expansionary but fiscally responsible”, they said.
Federal government
expenditure in 2012 is estimated at RM229 billion and this means that next
year’s spending will be slightly higher to cater for various comprehensive
programmes aimed at enhancing the well-being of the people in a number of
areas.
These include more
affordable housing, improved public transport, public safety, educational and
training facilities, and better business and investment opportunities.
The officials stressed that
while some people may be prone to labelling the budget as an “election budget”
in view of its people-centric programmes and timing as the next general
election is expected between now and June next year, one should not forget that
improving the livelihood of the people has been the clarion call of Najib since
he took office in April 2009.
The budget, they emphasised,
would be in line with his much-acclaimed principle of “People First,
Performance Now”, which would take into account the aspirations of the people
for a better life and laying the foundations towards a high-income and
developed economy by 2020.
In Budget 2012 announced
last year, Najib, who is also the Finance Minister, chose the theme: “National
Transformation Policy: Welfare for the Rakyat, Well-Being of the Nation.”
In other words, the Budget
2013′s philosophy goes beyond the general election.
Instead, it is geared
towards putting in place various initiatives for the well-being of the people
on several fronts like easing the cost of living, improving healthcare,
developing human capital and expanding basic infrastructure in under-developed
areas, especially Sabah and Sarawak.
In a departure from the
norm, the officials said that Najib, being a game-changer in the country’s
political and economic transformation, would ensure that Budget 2013 addressed
the concerns of the tax-paying urban middle-class, whose monthly incomes ranged
from RM5,000 to RM10,000.
There have been a lot of
debate that the previous national budgets had been heavily-skewed towards the
rural poor and that middle-class urbanites had often been neglected.
That aside, the well-being
of the entire community – rural folks, women, young people, civil servants and
businesses – will also be addressed to move the country forward as well as
provide a cushion against an uncertain external environment, especially the
turbulence emanating from Europe, next year.
This will mean a
continuation of policies to further stimulate the domestic economy, which has
seen fairly robust growth this year, especially in the construction,
manufacturing and services sectors.
Harsh external environment
The implementation of
several Entry Point Projects (EPPs) under the National Key Economic Areas
(NKEAs) has also given much impetus to the local economy.
This is especially evident
by the robust private sector investment besides the expansion of the local
capital market through the success of high-profile initial public offerings
(IPOs) like Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd and IHH Healthcare Bhd, the
improved market capitalisation of Bursa Malaysia and the increasing
attractiveness of Islamic finance in the global financial market.
Given the success of the
local capital market and the significant role undertaken by Malaysia in the
issuance of sukuk bonds, the government is expected to intensify incentives for
the capital market as an enabler of economic growth.
On the issue of prudent
financial management, the officials said the governmment remained committed
towards further lowering the fiscal deficit to around 4.0% in 2013 from 4.5% in
2012 and to 3.0% by 2015.
Asked how this would be
executed despite the budget being mildly expansionary, they explained that it
would be done through better financial management, including reducing wastage
and channelling subsidies to the right target groups instead of blanket
subsidies.
They said reducing the
deficit would not be a problem as long as the local economy thrived and
remained resilient against the adversities of a harsh external environment.
Asked whether the question
of lower excise duties for motor vehicles would be addressed in Budget 2013,
they said Najib’s budget speech should point towards a review of the country’s
automobile industry, where the livelihoods of more than 500,000 people
connected with the industry were at stake besides looking at the resurgence of
the national car companies. (Bernama)
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