PUTRAJAYA: The weakening of the ringgit is due to policy issues and international constraints, not because Malaysia does not have a “full-time” Finance Minister as claimed by the Opposition, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
The Prime Minister said those who raised the issue should have studied the matter before making such a suggestion.
“The person should read economic and financial reports, not just report on PAS,” he said when met after presenting keys to house owners of the Dalur civil servants’ housing project yesterday.
The Prime Minister was asked to comment on a statement by PAS’ Bachok MP Mohd Syahir Che Sulaiman that a full-time Finance Minister was needed to look into the depreciating value of the ringgit and other financial woes.
Mohd Syahir was reported to have said that while Bank Negara had taken the necessary measures such as raising the overnight policy rate (OPR) earlier last month, Malaysians were waiting for a strategy from the Prime Minister – who is also the Finance Minister – or the Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli to address the issue.
He said more efforts should be put into explaining to the people the challenges that Malaysia faces, as the prices of goods and raw materials had risen due to the increased cost of importing them.
Mohd Syahir, who is a PAS representative in the Special Parliamentary Select Committee on Finance and Economy, also said the ringgit’s value was faltering not just against the US dollar, but also against currencies like the Singapore dollar, Thai baht and Indonesian rupiah.
