PETALING JAYA: Since it was formed in November last year, the Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim-led unity government has made all the right policy decisions to revive the economy and help the people who have been suffering since the Covid-19 pandemic.
It has brought down inflation and managed the high cost of living and weak ringgit by launching the Rahmah initiative to help individuals and families lower their expenses.
The unity government has also been expending great efforts to create jobs by attracting billions of ringgit in foreign direct investments, said National Council of Professors senior fellow Datuk Dr Jeniri Amir.
He said by dealing with day-to-day issues such as inflation and high cost of living, the unity government is able to convince the voting public in the six states heading to the polls that it is doing a good job.
“The Rahmah initiative is a good way for the government to help the people, who are feeling the pinch from the high cost of living.
“The government has attracted (substantial) foreign direct investments, and this matters to the people. Now, it has to step up by providing people with the right skills to help them earn a higher income.
“The prime minister has made promises to help the people. But with the world facing economic challenges and high inflation, not everything can be achieved as quickly as the government wants,” Jeniri said.
He said it is important for the government to place more emphasis on job creation as this will help voters deal with the high cost of living.
“The government is working hard to deal with this issue but it cannot be solved overnight.
“The sad part is Perikatan Nasional is taking advantage of this during this campaigning period, so the government must step up and explain matters to the voters.”
Six states – Kedah, Penang, Kelantan, Terengganu, Selangor and Negri Sembilan – go to the polls on Aug 12 to form new state governments.
Universiti Tun Abdul Razak political commentator Dr Barjoyai Bardai said the working community in the country is about 16.5 million, which accounts for nearly half (48%) of the population.
He said of this total, nearly 70% are unskilled workers who need help to upgrade their skills to earn a better living.
Barjoyai stressed that just increasing the basic salary, which takes time, is not the main answer to having such a huge number of unskilled workers.
“The government has to help them hone skills that can lift them out of the middle-income trap.”
He said Anwar understands the problem and has come up with programmes to help unskilled workers get out of the cycle.
“With nearly 12 million workers in the middle-income trap, even they understand that they need to upskill.
“One of the government’s main programmes, the Rahmah initiative, has benefited the lower-income group and most importantly, even students and single individuals, who have no choice but to have their daily meals at shops.
“The lower meal cost is a boon to students and single working adults, who can now save money as their cost of meals has fallen.”
Selangor PH election director Mohd Yahya Mat Sahri said no state can make a go by itself if it wants to bring development to the people. The federal government has been very helpful to all states.
“Every state needs the full support of the federal government because a state only has limited resources and it has control over such matters as land and water.
“If the state wants to build an LRT, MRT or expand the road system or network, it will need help from the federal government.
“The unity government does not discriminate and the policies that have been announced will help Pakatan Harapan-Barisan Nasional get the support of the voters in the coming elections,” he said.
Jeniri said the unity government has been expending great efforts to create jobs by attracting billions of ringgit in foreign direct investments.
