Story About Us...The Widely Untold: October 2011

Assalamualaikum wbt, Salam 1Malaysia

I was thinking to jot my opinions on the issue of price hike every time after yearly budget (national) tabled by our honourable Prime Minister, especially in the aspect of food price at restaurant (too many to name it).

Actually we Malaysian do not really realize our right as a customer to 'teach' these so called "opportunist" businessman and why they should not take advantage on rakyat by easily rocket up the price of what they are selling..

For instance, yesterday i heard through radio fm (I do not quite remember the details as per where and the name of the restaurant). The caller said a day before, he went and eat at the restaurant which cost him about RM13. But a day after budget speech, he went and eat the same restaurant (almost the same menu) at nearly triple yesterday's price!!

So, for a start, I would like to make suggestions as per below:

1) If you feel like any shop/restaurant/services cost you at unreasonable price, boycott it and report!

2) If it is a restaurant that charge you insanely, kindly ask for receipt and lodge report. Use the receipt as a proof that it charged you with such an unacceptable price (no matter what the reason they gave you).

Maybe it's not a big thingy here but at least if everybody have this awareness, we can actually drive the market especially the seller (all kind) to be more responsible to the community.

Thank you.

I got this from local newspaper. It will be easier for those who just want to know the gist of the budget 2012 by looking at the summary below:

Economy Summary

Last year our FDI growth was the strongest in Asia and in the first 6 months of this year have already reached RM21.2bil
In 2012, private investment is forecast to climb 15.9%, supported by foreign and domestic investment
GDP in the first 6 months of 2011 was 4.4%, driven by strong domestic consumption
In 2011, the economy is forecast to grow by 5-5.5%
Private and public investment are forecast to increase by 15.9% and 7%, supported by foreign investment, the ETP and 10MP
In 2012, the service sector is expected to grow 6.5%, the construction sector 7% and GDP is forecast to be between 5 and 6%

Budget 2012 allocates RM232.8bil for Government plans, including RM181.6bil for management and RM51.2bil for development
RM29.8bil has been allocated for investment in infrastructure, industrial and rural development
RM13.6bil has been allocated for the social sector, including education and training, welfare, housing and community development
Total revenue for 2012 is forecast to increase 1.9% to RM186.9bil and the deficit to decrease to 4.7% of GDP from 5.4% in 2011
The theme for Budget 2012 is “National Transformation Policy: Welfare for the Rakyat, Well-Being of the Nation”We will focus on accelerating investment and further liberalise 17 services sub-sectors, in places enabling 100% foreign equity.
RP2 will be implemented in 2012, and it will be allocated RM98.4bil, to be split evenly between 2012 & 2013
RP2 main projects will include the East Coast Highway from Jabor to T’ganu and road upgrades from Kota Marudu to Ranau
RM18bil of the RM20bil PPP Facilitation Fund will be used for high impact projects, with RM2 billion for bumiputera entrepreneurs
In 2012, the Government will allocate RM978mil to accelerate the development in five regional corridors
The Treasury Management Centre will be established and offer incentives to develop M’sia as a competitive financial centre. We will develop the Kuala Lumpur International Financial District, with incentives including income tax exemptions for firms. Income tax exemptions for non-ringgit sukuk issuance and transactions will be extended for another 3 years.
To promote the development of Exchange Traded Funds products I-VCAP will provide RM200mil for Shariah-compliant ETFs
Felda GVH will be listed on Bursa Malaysia by mid-2012 to raise funds for the company to become a global conglomerate. Felda settlers are expected to receive a windfall, and the amount will be announced before listing
A RM2bil shariah-compliant SME Financing Fund managed by selected Islamic banks will be established in 2012
A RM100mil SME Revitalisation Fund offering loans up to a maximum of RM1mil for entrepreneurs will be available from Jan 2012
Full exemption of import duty and excise duty on hybrid cars and electric cars will continue to be given until 2013
To promote tourism, the Langkawi Five Year Tourism Development Master Plan will be launched with an allocation of RM420mil
The real property gains tax will be reviewed so it doesn’t jeopardise the ability of low- and middle-income groups to buy homes
The Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council will be privatised to promote and develop Malaysia as a healthcare destination
Budget focuses on developing human capital, creativity and innovation and 2012 will be the National Innovation Movement year
The Govt has allocated RM100mil promote innovation including the 1Malaysia Award (C1PTA) for innovative student inventions
To enable SMEs to commercialise research products a Commercialisation Innovation Fund totalling RM500mil will be established
RM50.2bil will be allocated to the education sector so that it can continue to develop talented, creative and innovative people
RM1bil will be provided through a special fund for the construction, improvement and maintenance of schools
We will abolish payments for primary and secondary education, making these free for the first time in our history
Private schools registered with the Education Ministry will be given incentives including an Investment Tax Allowance
The Govt will give tax exemption for contributions to educational institutions and all places of worship
To encourage private sector human capital development incentives including a double deduction on scholarships will be offered
Budget 2012 introduces a Rural Transformation Programme, so that rural areas can attract private investment and create employment
RM5bil to develop rural infrastructure, including RM1.8bil to the Rural Road Programme & Village-Link Road Project
RM500mil to expand the programme to supply clean water to the rural community in Sabah
RM400mil to upgrade the water supply infrastructure in selected Felda areas
To provide greater access to bank services for the rural population, Bank Simpanan Nasional will appoint agents in rural areas
RM90mil for the Orang Asli for basic necessities, including the expansion of the clean water supply project. For the Orang Asli affected by the landslides at Sungai Ruil, RM20mil is provided for their relocation to new homes
600,000 Govt pensioners will benefit from an additional annual pension increment of 2%
Civil servants get pay rise between RM80 to RM320
Govt will extend the compulsory retirement age from 58 to 60 years old to optimise civil servants’ contribution
Civil servants will be offered tuition fee assistance for part-time studies, including 5,000 masters and 500 doctoral scholarships
A special programme will be introduced for 175,000 army personnel who are not eligible for pensions
RM3,000 will be given to ex-members of the special constable and auxiliary police as well as widows and widowers
The Govt is mindful of the plight of the rakyat due to rising food prices and will take measures to address this
The National Agro-Food Policy 2011-2020 will be launched and RM1.1bil allocated for the development of the agriculture sector
In the spirit of “People First,” all subsidies, incentives and assistance totalling RM33.2bil will be continued
500,000 will benefit from KAR1SMA, which provides assistance to poor senior citizens and children and disabled people
My First Home Scheme will be expanded to increase the limit of house prices from a maximum of RM220,000 to RM400,000
Govt will identify areas in the vicinity of MRT, LRT and other public transport to be developed by PR1MA
Govt will continue to implement the Program Perumahan Rakyat by building 75,000 units of affordable houses
Govt will establish the Special Housing Fund for Fishermen to build and refurbish houses
Healthcare will be allocated RM15bil operating expenditure and RM1.8bil development expenditure
Hospitals will be upgraded and constructed as well 81 rural health clinics upgraded and 50 new 1Malaysia clinics launched
Hospital Kuala Lumpur – the oldest in Malaysia – will be upgraded to be the country’s premier hospital
Skim Amanah Rakyat (SARA) 1Malaysia will benefit 100,000 households with income below RM3,000 per month
To assist taxi owners facing increased operating costs, measures will be introduced including tax exemptions on taxi purchases
The National Legal Aid Foundation will ensure that every individual who is charged in court will be given free legal aid
To assist the homeless, the Govt established a social assistance centre known as Anjung Singgah
A training allocation of RM10mil will be provided for women to develop leadership and managerial skills
To prevent cervical cancer, the Government will provide free Human Papilloma Virus immunisation nationwide
MyCreative Venture Capital with an initial fund of RM200mil to be established
RM15mil will be allocated to build 150 futsal courts to achieve the “One Court for One Mukim” target
To ensure the welfare of retirees measures including a tax relief on Private Retirement Schemes contributions are introduced
Senior citizens aged 60 years & above will be exempted from outpatient registration fees in Govt hospitals & health clinics
One-off assistance of RM500 to households with a monthly income of RM3,000 and below will be provided
For those in private sector earning RM5000 and below, employers’ EPF contribution will increase from 12% to 13%
Book voucher worth RM200 will be given to Malaysian students in all private and public institutions of higher learning
Civil servants will be given an additional bonus of half-month salary and pensioners RM500