Standardise prices of all goods

Kota Kinabalu: Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad should make it a top "national agenda" to standardise the prices of all goods throughout the country, and not just prices of subsidised goods, said former Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Tham Nyip Shen.

"While I commend his swift move and effort of having convinced the Federal Government to standardise the prices of subsidised goods throughout the country, which is in fact long overdue, I would also like to urge him to strive to standardise the prices of all the other goods throughout the country, ultimately.

"This is in order to be fair to Malaysians living in Sabah and Sarawak who have been paying more for most of the goods sold in the two states, which is absolutely unfair to them in the context of 'one nation' and, coupled with the fact that like their peninsula counterparts, they too are paying the same rate of income tax, no rebate at all," said Tham.

Tham said this in a statement, Monday, in response to the recent announcement made by Shahrir that the Federal Government would standardise the prices of subsidised goods throughout the country next month.

"For once, someone at the Federal Government level is thinking about Malaysia as one country. Previously, when this issue about standardising goods prices was raised, it fell on deaf ears, despite the fact that the Ministry was once headed by a Sabahan. Syabas to Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad.

"Hence, if Shahrir could achieve this (standardising prices of all goods), the people of Sabah and Sarawak would really appreciate him and this would also be a noble virtue and a great legacy that a politician or policy-maker of this country could leave behind, in as far as nation building is concerned," he said.

He reiterated that it is not impossible to realise such a move provided there is strong political will.

He cited the United States of America as a good example of a nation with standard pricing for all goods, despite its sheer size that is about 28 times larger than the size of Malaysia.

Tham said the higher prices of goods in Sabah had inevitably and unfairly contributed to a high cost of living and a higher cost of doing business in the State, in comparison to the other states.

This was coupled with the fact that almost all the leading government departments and agencies are based in Peninsular Malaysia, especially in the Federal capital, Kuala Lumpur.

This often compelled Sabahans and Sarawakians to travel to Kuala Lumpur to do business and to attend meetings.

"So far, MPs' airfares are subsidised but what about the ordinary citizens?

Until AirAsia came into the picture, there was no chance for the people of Sabah and Sarawak to travel to Kuala Lumpur on a cheap airfare. And now, even though MAS too has started to offer RM0 fare, it is mainly for holidays," he said.

Tham, who is also Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) think-tank chief, thus contended that only when the issue of price discrepancies and other inequalities and unfair policies are fully resolved can Malaysia proclaim itself as a country that is truly united.

"I would like to see a truly united Malaysia, where people across the nation live under the same policy and fair treatment in all aspects of their life," he stressed.

He also reminded that the Federation of Malaysia would not have existed, if not for the support and participation of the people of Sabah and Sarawak in the first place.

Daily Express
Sabah
27/05/08