KUALA LUMPUR: Resolving people-related issues, particularly the cost of living, remains the main priority of the government, says Fahmi Fadzil.
The Communications Minister said this was the way forward for the nation after seeing positive economic development following almost 22 months under the administration of the unity government.
“The nation was put on a new path following the announcement of the Madani Economic Framework.
“A year has passed since the announcement, which was followed by the New Industrial Master Plan and National Energy Transition Roadmap.
“We have since seen a healthy inflow of foreign investment into the country which has been increasing every quarter compared to the previous year,” he told reporters after the Minister’s Conversation 2024 held at the National Institute of Public Administration yesterday.
Fahmi said the growing foreign investor confidence had also translated to a stronger ringgit, which had stabilised to its strongest level to date.
“The ringgit is RM4.31 compared to the US dollar. We expect it to strengthen further,” he added.
On political stability, Fahmi said this was also achieved under the current administration, which led to a positive spillover benefiting the rakyat.
He also cited the introduction of the Progressive Wage Policy, which will see wage increases for employees in about 1,000 companies and salary adjustments for civil servants under the Public Service Remuneration System from Dec 1.
Besides this, Fahmi, who is also the spokesman for the government, said the nation’s gross domestic product has remained healthy while the government has succeeded in lowering the deficit and government borrowings.
“Inflation is stable at around 2% and this proves that the economy is on a solid track. So the metric in terms of economic growth is quite positive.
“The price of goods is under control, and the stock of goods is sufficient, particularly during the festive season,” he said.
As for Sarawak and Sabah, the minister said the fulfilment of seven demands concerning the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) was among the highlights of the current government’s achievements.
“We will continue to make efforts to fulfil the remaining demands,” he added.
Recently, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said 11 demands under the MA63 had been resolved, of which seven were during Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s leadership.
Moving forward, Fahmi said it is important to ensure the issues affecting the rakyat are addressed accordingly.
“Our focus is to resolve problems faced by the rakyat, particularly those involving the cost of living, and to spur economic growth,” he said.
On a separate matter, Fahmi said efforts will be made to help the local media industry weather the storm of losing advertising revenue to social media giants.
He acknowledged that companies are increasingly using social media platforms to advertise, resulting in an estimated RM2.5bil combined loss of revenue to media outlets.
Previously, he said the government would not intervene directly but would allow local media and social media platform providers to hold talks to find common ground for a suitable commercial agreement.
