Dr Wee: Mid-Term Review 'full of empty rhetoric'

PETALING JAYA: MCA deputy president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong (pic) criticised the Mid-Term Review of the 11th Malaysia Plan, stating that it was "general, non-specific, superficial and full of empty rhetoric".

"I had expected a major overhaul of the 11th MP, especially since the Pakatan Harapan government is so fond of criticising the policies and administration of the Barisan Nasional government. 

"The mid-term review should have been the perfect opportunity for (Prime Minister) Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his team to enlighten the opposition as well as the rakyat of their grand strategies to bolster national development. 

"But we were simply presented with a rebranding and repackaging of previous initiatives, peppered with keywords synonymous with Pakatan Harapan such as 'reformasi' (reformation) and 'berhemat' (financially prudent)," he said in a statement on his Facebook page on Thursday (Oct 18).

Dr Wee, who is also Ayer Hitam MP, criticised several parts of the review, including the government's intention to embark on austerity measures. 

"The government has boasted about its aspirations to improve the financial position of the government but their actions run counter to their own stated goals. 

"For instance, the 11th MP had a budget deficit target of 0.6% of GDP by 2020, but this goal is now postponed and replaced with a deficit target of 3% of GDP by 2020, despite the cancellation of mega projects such as the High-Speed Rail," he said.

He added the government has failed to understand that cancellation of such projects will not only affect investor confidence but will also ultimately hamper economic growth and affect government finances.

He also questioned the government's move to empower Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), despite having halted the operations of the Secretariat for the Advancement of Malaysian Entrepreneurs (SAME), as well as the announcement to implement a progressive tax levy for foreign workers.