Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s decision to abolish the Approved Permit (AP) licenses should cover not only food items, but all other imported goods, including motor vehicles.
The removal of APs for food, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic is timely as this will bring down the escalating prices of food.
But why only abolish APs for food? The government should get rid of all APs especially for motor vehicles, as this will also reduce the amount of red tapes, which eventually lead to opportunities for corruption, and this results in the increase in the cost of goods imported.
For far too long, the AP holders have been enjoying their special privileges, and instead of benefiting the people, the policy only benefits and enriches certain well-connected individuals, at the expense of the consumers.
By introducing competition in the open market, this will help to drive down the cost of imported goods. At the same time, local entrepreneurs will be in a better position to develop their global competitiveness and become a key player in the international market.
Instead of the APs, if the government is serious about helping the industry to grow and help the country to tide over the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, local manufacturers will have to be given the special incentives to innovate and upgrade their technology and production facilities so that they are on par with other manufacturers from around the world.
Without these steps being undertaken, just the removal of APs for imported foodstuff would not be sufficient in combating inflation.