GST Collection Slowing Down. Kenapa GST Miskinkan Orang Melayu Dulu.

This is from today's Star Online :

• Customs confident of surpassing target GST revenue of RM42bil this year.
• Customs DG said this year's collection surpass 2016's revenue of RM41bil.

Read more at http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/09/18/gst-revenue-to-exceed-rm42bil-this-year/#FHPgM5L8VOVtowPW.99

 

Earlier in January, the Finance Minister 2 had already said that GST collection this year will be RM42 bil.  Here is FMT :

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2017/01/09/malaysia-to-collect-rm42-billion-in-gst-this-year/
 

Malaysia to collect RM42b in GST this year
January 9, 2017
RM1b more than 2016

• govt expects to collect RM42b in GST this year 
• compared with RM41b last year
• economic slowdown, Malaysia was not spared
• economic slowdown now, we expect small increase in GST collection

Wow it appears that the Finance Minister 2 was exactly on the dot in January 2017. He could predict in January that the GST collection would only be RM42 billion this year.

And now, still only in September the Customs are confirming the prediction. The GST collection will be only RM42 billion this year.

How do we know for sure that they even collected RM42 billion? 

Whatever their stories,  the GST collection is slowing down. The MOF2 said in January that Malaysia was not spared the economic slowdown.

But the moron and his minions say the economy is in good shape.  

One dud even mentioned GST collection will be RM55 BILLION ?? 

Smarter folks could already see that after the euphoria of the first few years of the GST, the overall economy is slowing down. The net result is that eventually GST collection will also decrease. 

How can you have increasing GST collections when the economy is slowing down?

Now here is where I feel the GST will cause the Malay / bumiputra economy to slow down even more and more.  

And ultimately (since Malays / bumiputras are the largest consumer group in the country) it will kill off the entire economy.

Listen carefully ok.

Those 7.1 million BR1M recipients (of whom the Malays / bumiputras make up the largest portion) have little or no excess income.  

Before the GST, this group was exempted from paying income taxes (if their monthly income was less than RM3000).  So their take home pay or wages were basically intact. 

This applied to all Malays / bumiputras whose monthly income was less than RM3000. 

Now with the arrival of the GST, this equation has changed. Now all people including those 7.1 million on the BR1M list have to pay GST.  The GST is 6%.

But you have to add on a few more things.  Before they implemented the GST, they already removed many subsidies. The removal of subsidies caused the prices to shoot up already.

Then after prices had gone up, they imposed the GST.  The GST  caused the prices to go up higher one more time. 

Now did the prices also increase by exactly 6%?  

No. The prices went up much higher - by 15% or more. This is because of the compounding effect of the GST.  As well as the compounding effect of the remopval of the subsidies as well. 

Now how do the non Malays, non bumiputras handle this huge price increaes? Well they are suffering too.  No one is spared the ill effects of price rises.

But there is a difference. The non Malays and non bumiputras seem to have a higher resilience towards rising prices. Most of them are engaged in the private sector or engaged in businesses which react quickly to changes in the market.  In business, if your costs increase then you pass it on to the consumers.  You still have to make your profit percentage, whatever is that percentage.  As long as you can make sufficient sales to cover your costs, then you can survive.  Whether the GST is 6% or 9%, they just pass it through to the consumer. 

But a very huge portion of Malays / bumiputras are fixed income wage earners or operate in the informal sector where earnings are low and unpredictable. As I said, before these people did not have to pay income taxes.

But now like it or not, they have to suffer higher prices caused by the GST and the removal of the subsidies. 

They have to pay more without any increment in their income (or little increment).  

Since they have little or no surplus cash income, this means they  will soon need to liquidate their assets to pay for their daily survival. 

Those 7.1 million people on that BR1M list are certainly in this category. That is a lot of people - do not take this number lightly.

So what will they do to "make ends meet"?

• First they will use up their  savings accounts. 
• Then they will liquidate their ASB and Tabung Haji accounts. 
• Then they may sell their jewellery or pawn them. 
• Then they will sell their cars, houses, land etc.

In Pantai Dalam a brand new pawn shop has opened.  Here is a picture : 

This is largely a low income neighborhood, almost 100% Malay. 

Many people here qualify as  BR1M recipients.  

Obviously the new kedai pajak sees great potential in this area.

After THREE years of the GST, things are getting worse. 

Businesses are dying (except kedai pajak).

Even the MOF2 acknowledged in the news report above that Malaysia is suffering slowdown.  

With business slowing down and the economy also slowing down, there are even less opportunities. Unemployment is growing. Even engineering graduates are becoming house maids. 

Without a capacity to generate surplus income, the Malay people are going to have to liquidate more of their savings and assets just to sustain themselves. 

The GST and its resulting price increases are directly to blame for this impoverishment of the Malays. Melayu miskin dulu.  

In other countries where all things are more equal (ceteris paribus) the GST, VAT etc may impact everyone to the same extent.

But not in Malaysia.  

There is no ceteris paribus in Malaysia. 

All things are NOT equal in Malaysia.

Large numbers of non Malays and non bumiputras can sustain themselves economically and generate surplus incomes.  They have better chances of withstanding high prices. Being largely business people or trade oriented, they can "pass through" higher costs of doing business.  (Only their sales would have dropped).  They can pay GST and income taxes from their surpluses. They may not need to dip into their savings or sell assets to sustain themselves. (I am speaking about the community in general and not individual cases.)

Large numbers of Malays and bumiputras cannot sustain themselves economically without things like BR1M,  handout policies, affirmative action etc.  They cannot withstand high prices as well. Being largely wage earners they cannot "pass through" higher costs and prices.

For over 40 years, more than 7.1 million Malays never paid income taxes. Meaning those people earning below RM3000 per month. 

The oil revenues were sufficient for the government to ignore the fact that millions upon millions of Malays and bumiputras did not earn enough to even pay taxes. 

Only 2.1 million people pay taxes out of a 14 million workforce and a 30 million population.

Now with the disappearance of the oil revenues, the gomen is using the 'cold turkey' treatment on the same Malays and bumiputras.   

Through the GST the gomen has suddenly made all the Malays and bumiputras taxpayers.   

And the gomen has removed the subsidies that went to sustaining the Malay / bumiputra standard of living.

I am not against the removal of subsidies. I am just telling you what has happened and (more importantly) what is going to happen. 

(I have been screaming and bickering that this will happen for over 15 years now).

And all this is happening without increasing the Malay / bumiputra capacity to earn surplus income (enough for them  to comfortably pay income taxes and GST taxes).  This is "cold turkey" treatment.

What will happen? 

The 'economic' situation will get worse. 

With the Malays having less purchasing power, ALL businesses will suffer.

There will be more business closures. There will be more unemployment.

Those who are still employed will see slower wage increases.

There are simple, fast and results guaranteed solutions to overcome the situation. There really is. Please have faith. There is a great future awaiting all of us. You must believe this. THIS IS NOT A HOPELESS SITUATION.

But you must do the right things. 

Just do the right things, the wealth will flow - for everyone.

Do the wrong things, do the stupid things and you become poor. 

And dont forget Melayu miskin dulu.