Selangor’s Integrity & Credibility At Stake If Unable To Prove Their Claims That Selangor Is More Developed Than New Zealand, Has Better University Education Than Singapore And Is  Cleaner Than Belgium 

Press Statement
By Lim Guan Eng

(Petaling Jaya, Friday): In his letter to The Star dated 13 July 2005, Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Dr Mohd Khir Toyo vigorously defended himself against vociferous criticisms from many quarters of his intended declaration of Selangor as a developed state on 27 August 2005. He provided some statistics to back up his assertions such as:

• Relocating up to 80% of the existing 47,781 squatter families to low-cost homes;

• RM 6bil in investment last year creating 24,146 jobs; 

• GDP is nearly US$60bil (RM228bil), with a per capita income of US$12,876 (RM48,928.80), measured using the purchasing power parity method;

• Infant mortality rate at 3.7 per 1,000 live births is better than that of Australia, Austria, New Zealand and Switzerland;

• Teacher-to-student ratio for schools is 1:19 for primary schools and 1:16.8 for secondary schools, comparable to Japan. 

Dismissing such criticisms as myopic Dr Mohd Khir claimed that with a per-capita income in excess of US$ 10,000, Selangor is to all intents and purposes a developed state. He added that Selangor had relied on the National Productivity Corporation (NPC) to conduct a study benchmarking Selangor against 30 nations and regions using 75 indicators developed by the International Institute for Management Development for its World Competitiveness Report measuring economic growth, business, public sector delivery system and infrastructure.

Such arguments are erroneous for three reasons. First The World Competitiveness Report developed by the Swiss-based International Institute for Management Development used 314 indicators, not 75 indicators, for its World Competitiveness Report. Such benchmarking by NPC using 75 indicators is not credible nor reliable because it is not comprehensive enough.

Secondly, the methodology is suspect as the results from the survey obtained by the NPC reveal that

• Selangor is more developed than New Zealand,

• Selangor has better university education than Singapore; and

• Selangor is less corrupt and cleaner than Belgium.

Few would be convinced that Selangor is more developed than New Zealand or that Selangor possesses better universities than Singapore. Most astounding of all is the claim that corruption is effectively controlled in Selangor until Selangor is cleaner than Belgium.

Belgium’s capital (Brussels) houses the European Commission. Belgium’s effectiveness in checking corruption is substantiated by Transparency International which placed Belgium as No. 17 in the World Corruption Perceptions Index(CPI). Belgium scored 7.5 out of 10 points in the CPI whilst Malaysia at No. 39, barely passed with 5 out of 10 points. Selangor is definitely not cleaner than Belgium.

Finally Dr Mohd Khir’s claims of achieving developed status are not borne out by perception, facts or reality. For instance how can Selangor claim exports of RM 87 billion from Selangor based on what is shipped out from Port Klang and KLIA, when they originate not just from Selangor but from all over Malaysia? Further how many Selangorians, particularly those living in squatter homes, have that sense of well-being from a per capita income of US$12,876 (RM48,928.80) or  actually earns RM 4,000/- monthly?

Datuk Mohd Khir should respect truthful and reliable information as necessary conditions to restore public and investor confidence in his management of Selangor’s economy. As Selangor has not achieved developed state status, the Selangor Maju Jaya celebrations beginning on August 27^th should be immediately cancelled. This will not only save millions of ringgit in private donations or public funds but also salvage the integrity and credibility of both Selangor and Malaysia’s economic reputation.

(15/07/2005)