Thursday March 2, 2006
Najib: Adapt to higher fuel prices
BY LEONG SHEN-LI
PETALING JAYA: Malaysians should change their lifestyle and adapt to the inevitable fuel price increase, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.
The Deputy Prime Minister said Malaysians should become more prudent in their spending and ensure there was no wastage.
“Such changes in lifestyle should be made so that even if there were increases in fuel prices, Malaysians will be able to continue having the good quality and comforts of life which they have been enjoying,” he said.
He said this during an interview on RTM1’s Isu Semasa Khas programme which was aired live over RTM1, TV3, NTV7 as well as radio stations last night.
Najib, who chairs the Cabinet committee on the impact of fuel prices, said if such changes were not made, Malaysia could end up being a net importer of petroleum by as soon as 2010 and this would further burden the country.
Currently, Malaysia, despite having oil, was only a very small net exporter of the product, he said.
”What we are doing now is to create a sound financial base for future generations.”
He said the removal of subsidies was part of prudent macro financial management and was necessary for Malaysia to have good governance.
Najib said one change in lifestyle which Malaysians had to make was to accept public transport.
He said the Government’s move to increase fuel prices was coupled with a greater focus on public transport.
He said the Cabinet decided yesterday to set up a fund which would receive the savings gained from the removal of fuel subsidies.
“The fund will be used to develop new public transport facilities and to improve the existing systems,” he said, adding that current systems needed to have greater connectivity and to be better integrated.
Najib said a Cabinet committee on public transport would be set up to implement these changes.
The committee would be chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, with Najib as deputy.
Najib said Malaysians should discard the preconception that public transport was for the lower class.
“Some ministers have told me that they use the light rail transit to go for functions,” he said.
On the massive quantum of 30 sen, Najib said it was still lower than the total increase last year.
Asked if the Government had to put aside political risks to go ahead with the increase, Najib said there would only be a political risk if the people did not understand the reasons for such a move.
Meanwhile, Umno Youth chief Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said the Government’s decision to raise the price of fuel was a brave one, which had to be carried out following a sharp increase in world oil prices.
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