M Gov - Part 1

A fellow Malaysian lawyer friend's take on the M Gov (for security purposes, let's just call him JLee):

Over the years, the government has steadily increased the toll charges and prices of petrol. Among other reasons, this wouldn't be such a big issue if the spending/buying power was stronger. Prices of the basic items have increased dramatically over the years but the salaries of the average Malaysian have not. To put this into perspective, an example will be the Malaysian legal profession itself. In 1981, the average monthly salary for a fresh, first-year-in-practice lawyer was RM1800. Today, in 2007, the average first-year lawyer's salary remains around RM1800. Take the rate of inflation into account, etc you will find that today's lawyers are worse off compared to 1981. Kuala Lumpur, by the way, isn't a cheap place to live in if you are earning RM.

Why is the spending/buying power of Malaysia weak? Ultimately you'd have to look at the Malaysian Ringgit itself. The RM just isn't strong enough compared to, for example the SGD. When one needs to convert from the RM, it becomes expensive, and this applies across the board, from the average Malaysian buying his goods, to the company using say, the US $ to purchase raw materials/items, etc. One example- international magazines. Let's just consider this dollar for dollar, assuming that RM1 equals SGD1.00. GQ magazine costs about SGD11.00 whereas in Malaysia, it costs RM24.00. For someone earning in SGD, s/he merely has to pay half of what a Malaysian would have to pay for the magazine. The buying power here is simply stronger.

The RM is weak because there isn't enough of an international demand for it. Malaysia is simply not competitive enough in international trade. Add that (among other things) with the current political climate of the country (affirmative action being exercised in favour of the majority race in the country, creating more wealth and opportunities for the majority race, but at what cost? Law grads who can barely construct a proper sentence in English (whom, by the way were granted entries into uni to study law with 5 Es in their A Levels), monies going into the pockets of cronies, etc), you have a currency that is not fulfilling its potential.

It all boils down to whether they want to be competitive. All they are more interested in is safe-guarding is the interests of their race. The affirmative action policy has made Malaysia the country it is today- rising prices, low wages, low standards, disgruntled citizens. If they continue doing so (and they will) the country will be headed further into the doldrums.