(Perak DAP Headquarters, Friday):

Today the DAP launched the Perak State Level ‘No to Barang Naik’ campaign to help the public see that the series of price hikes of various taxes, goods and services by the BN Government are indiscrimate and unjustified.

1.                  Assessment rates, Quit Rent and Land Registration fees in Perak State

In the Perak State, the BN State Government raised the Assessment Rate last year by as much as 112%. Registration fees at land Offices were increased multiple folds last June. Quit rent increase  this year reaches as high as 900%. All these increases have nothing to do with world petroleum price hike which the BN Government always used to justify the increase in taxes, price of goods and services.

The BN Government is good at warning the public against profiteering and threatened the business community with swift action if they increase the price of their goods and services. However, the BN Government is the culprit who increased the Government taxes, goods and services indiscriminately and without valid reasons. Where is the leadership by example? Where is the ‘people first’ promise of the BN which BN always make during the General Elections?

2.                  Water

The Perak BN Government has announced that water tariffs will be up by 15% on 1^st April 2006. There is no basis for such an increase as the Perak Water Board has been making millions of ringgit every year. It made RM54.03 million in 2005. The table below shows the profits that Perak Water Board made from 1998 to 2005.

The last 8 years’ profit totaled RM265,309,200.

Why the need to increase the water tariff unless to enrich a few when the Perak Water Board is corporatised this year?

The non revenue water loss for Perak in 2005 was 30.65% compared Penang’s 18%. Perak should improve its water management to reduce its non revenue water and be more efficient in its water management and reduce its water tariff. The average water tariff rate in Perak at the moment is 87 sen per cu metre while Penang is charging as low as 22 sen per cu meter! The water tariff in Perak should be reduced and not increased.

3.                  Petrol

From 1/5/2004 to 28/2/2006, Petrol price has gone up by 40% and diesel price has gone up by 102% as can be seen from the chart below.

The price increase of petrol and diesel has serious consequences on the public as it will have a chain effect of causing the prices of other goods and services to increase. It will also cause many industries to be less competitive and some to be no longer viable. The Government says that it will save RM4.4 billion in oil subsidy with the increase announced on 28/2/2006. However, the people must know that an increase in the price of petroleum will mean an increase in revenue for our country as we are a net exporter of petroleum. Petronas’ profit for 2004-2005 is at least RM35.5 billion excluding the RM31.2 billions paid to the Government in the form of taxes, duties and royalty payments. Its profit for 2005-2006 is expected to reach RM50.0 billion. If distributed to all Malaysians  each of us will get RM2,000 each. Isn’t right that the general public be entitled to enjoy a portion of our nation’s God given wealth? Our petroleum money has often in the past been used to enrich BN’s cronies or save them from their business collapse.

4.                  Electricity

The BN Government is expected to announce a 10%-15% tariff hike for the electricity supplied by Tenaga National Berhad (TNB).

TNB enjoyed a 70-fold rise in net profits from RM8.5 million the previous year to RM595.6 million for the 1^st quarter Nov. 30 2005. Such a 70 times increase in profit proves that TNB can generate revenue from efficiency gains through proper financial planning, fund matching and cutting costs as well as increasing market share and not by increasing electricity tariffs.

It is true that the average price paid by TNB for coal jumped 46% in the 3 months to May 31 2005, to US$49.80 (RM189) per tonne from US$33 per tonne over the same period a year earlier. However, 70% of Malaysia’s power plants run on natural gas. Since May 1997, Petronas has supplied processed gas to TNB and Independent Power Producers (IPPs) at a regulated price of RM6.40 per Mmbtu (British thermal unit) as compared to the current market price of more than RM30.00.

Petronas has subsidised the power sector more than RM25 billion since 1997, of which RM14 billion or 55% went to the IPPs, whilst the remaining RM11 billion is enjoyed by TNB. Having received the benefit of RM11 billion in subsidy, TNB must shoulder some social and national responsibility not to increase the electricity tariff which will also have a chain effect on our national economy.

TNB recorded a 57% net profit increase to RM1.29 billion in the year to August 2005 as compared to RM813.7 million the previous year. Tenaga has even less justification for increasing electricity rates after declaring to 12 sen dividend and for the 1^st time a 1 for 4 bonus share issue.

TNB is no longer required to subsidise Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB). Every year TNB gave more than RM200 million to SESB. Now the Government has agreed to subsidise the diesel costs amounting to RM339 million, which have already been billed to the Government. Such savings should be passed on to consumers.

The Government should reduce TNB’s high reserve margin of 40% by reviewing unfair compulsory power purchase agreements of power generated by IPPs to TNB, contracted at higher than market rates. Such IPP agreements were made not for the benefit of Malaysians but for the few cronies of BN. The BN Government should be made responsible for such irresponsible decisions and the people must not be made to suffer by paying a higher electricity tariff.

In conclusion the increase in prices of all the above said items are not justified and the culmulative effect of the above said price increases will be a burden too heavy to bear especially the poor amongst us. DAP Perak calls on the people to say No to Barang Naik (price increase) and no to the BN Government now and in the next General Election.

Only through the united voice of the people can the BN Government be pressured to reduce and not increase its taxes, goods and services.

The taxes collected and the revenue now generated is sufficient if the BN Government take measures to cut down on wastage, corruption, inefficiency, leakages and abuses in the Government administration. The ball is in BN Government’s court to perform and not on the people to squeeze their hard earned ringgit to feed BN’s inefficient, corrupt and wasteful administration.