ALL that Sim Tze Tzin who is part of the newly minted five-member PKR President’s Office Secretariat to address issues which crop up in the country’s political landscape had wanted to do was to showcase that Malaysia under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (PMX) had achieved its best ever investment performance in 2023 at a sum of RM329.5 bil.
“Is the economy bad? PMX (2023): RM329.5 bil; PM9 (2022): RM267.8 bil; PM8 (2021): RM309.4 bil,” he penned on the X (previously Twitter) platform. “The highest investment in Malaysia’s history is achieved in 2023. This is a fact. Let the fact speaks.”
Ekonomi teruk?
PMX (2023) – RM329.5 billion
PM9 (2022) – RM267.8 billion
PM8 (2021) – RM309.4 billionPelaburan tertinggi dalam sejarah pada 2023. Ini fakta.
Biar fakta yang berbicara. pic.twitter.com/y540U6MtCS
— SimTzeTzin 沈志勤 🇲🇾 (@simtzetzin) April 21, 2024
But the well-intended social media post by the Bayan Baru MP who is also the PKR deputy strategic director failed to convince his target audience who instead claimed that they were unable to feel their pockets filled with money despite the so-called improved investment climate.
In fact, they wondered if ministers or politicians are lying to the people with one netizen suggested that the comparison with 2021 and 2022 investment trend was unjust because that period marked the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some economically/financially inclined netizens contended that not only should the comparison be made in greenback equivalent but more foreign investment should technically lead to appreciation of the ringgit which is not the case but instead the purchasing power of the people is diminishing.
In fact, not only is the purchasing power of Malaysians has fallen, one netizen is concerned with the national debt level which has peaked at RM1.3 tril.
With economic literacy of the people having improved, one netizen even enquired if the stated figures are realised investments or simply projected figures while another justified that higher investments “need not equate to a better quality of life or a lower cost of living” given inflationary pressure.
In essence, it is certainly not easy for ministers or politicians to impress their electorate with economic figures nowadays given the advent of Internet and social media reach has enabled many Malaysians to keep themselves informed of the latest development in the world around them.
So, how about challenging the Madani government to achieve RM400 bil for 2024? – April 22, 2024
