The PH government had already agreed to implement the pledge in the PH General Election Manifesto to allow PTPTN borrowers to repay loans only when their monthly salaries exceed RM4,000/-. This formula by PTPTN and approved by the then Ministry of Finance, will result in the government having to bear additional loans on top of existing ones borne by the government to finance the PTPTN loans.
Unfortunately, the PH government fell before this formal announcement could be made. Hopefully this pledge to help PTPTN borrowers to repay loans only when they earn more than RM4,000 monthly will still be fulfilled, despite the additional loan obligations that is to be incurred by the government.
Over the last 21 months, the PH government had worked hard to fulfil and deliver our manifesto promises progressively. Amongst the many achievements are:
1) Lowering living costs
a) the restructuring of PLUS resulting in RM42 billion in savings for the government and consumers, with a reduction in toll rates for the North South Highway by 18% for private vehicles, buses and taxies with no toll hikes for the remainder of the concession period;
b) the abolition of the GST and its replacement with SST;
c) the success of bringing inflation under control from 3.8% in 2017 to 0.7% in 2019; and
d) The stabilisation of RON95 by reducing the maximum capped price from RM2.20 per litre to RM2.08 per litre.
2) Providing new health protection
e) the RM2.5 billion MySalam free health protection scheme offering monetary assistance ranging from RM4,000 to RM8,000 for Malaysians free of charge who are suffering from 45 critical illnesses and earn less than RM100,000 yearly.
3) Enhancing transparency in public finance
f) the institutionalisation of open tender throughout the government to fight corruption and improve the efficiency of government spending;
g) the introduction of more transparent fiscal reporting through the full disclosure of government debt and liabilities;
h) the finalisation of the shift towards accrual accounting from cash-basis in 2021 to increase transparency and accountability in government finances; and
i) the repaying of unpaid GST refunds amounting to RM19.4 billion.
4) Better fiscal management
j) the consolidation of fiscal deficit from 3.7% of GDP in 2018 to 3.4% in 2019;
k) the retention of our international credit ratings at A-/A3 despite having to pay tens of billions of Ringgit for 1MDB, Tabung Haji and other related scandals; and
l) the revival of major infrastructure projects following savings of over RM50 billion from renegotiation and rationalization of previous public works like LRT3, MRT2, Pan Borneo Highways and ECRL.
5) Creating job opportunities
m) the RM6.5 billion Malaysia@Work program that will create 350,000 jobs, for unemployed Malaysians who cannot secure a job after 1 year of job search, by giving RM500 monthly incentives to workers and RM300 monthly incentives for employers for a period of 2 years.
6) Digitalisation
n) encouraging digital payments through the innovative use of e-wallets through the RM450 million e-Tunai Rakyat programme that provides RM30 free shopping money for all who are above 18 years old and earning less than RM100,000; and
o) the provision of RM28.6 billion in grants, incentives, loans to provide broadband networking and encouraging businesses especially SMEs to adapt to the digital economy.