KUALA LUMPUR: Government-linked companies, government-linked investment companies and statutory bodies should not be made to pay for Federal responsibilities such as higher education and healthcare, says Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong (BN-Ayer Hitam).
"Higher education, healthcare, welfare, national heritage and the provision of essential utilities are the responsibilities of the federal government.
"They must be financed through the Budget and approved by this august House, rather than requiring companies or statutory bodies to make contributions," he said when debating Budget 2027 in the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday (Oct 14).
Dr Wee said he was concerned over the number of such entities made to fulfil these responsibilities.
"How many of these commitments were genuinely selected because they offer attractive investment returns and how many were made to fulfil the government's agenda, which should instead be funded through federal allocations?" he asked.
As an example, Dr Wee said Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (KWAP) would invest RM750mil to build hostels in six public universities.
"When is it KWAP's duty to build hostels for students? KWAP's funds consist of retired civil servants' funds. Its mandate is to provide handsome returns to contributors and retirees," he said.
He said the practice could become an unsustainable form of fiscal spending in the long term.
Dr Wee also raised concerns over Malaysia's fiscal position, questioning why the overall public sector deficit is projected to balloon to RM162.1bil.
He said the overall public sector deficit in 2025 stood at RM87.1bil, equivalent to 4.3% of gross domestic product (GDP).
"In 2026, it rose to RM131.9bil, or 6.0% of GDP. For 2027, it is projected to climb further to RM162.1bil, equivalent to 7.0% of GDP.
"In just two years, the public sector deficit has increased by approximately RM75bil, or 86%. This is almost double the 2025 figure.
"Why does the gap between the federal government's deficit and the overall public sector deficit continue to widen?" he asked.
Dr Wee also called for the 800kWh monthly subsidy threshold for domestic households in peninsular Malaysia to be extended beyond the current Dec 31, 2026 deadline.
He said lowering the threshold back to 600kWh would see close to one million households bearing additional costs.
"There have been no announcements in Budget 2027 on whether it will be extended. The government must make the 800kWh threshold the fixed limit, taking into account the high cost of living," he said.
Dr Wee said small and medium enterprises as well as commercial consumers receive no exemptions.
"When food processing factories or component manufacturers face higher electricity bills, the prices of locally manufactured products will inevitably rise. This contributes to cost-push inflation.
"This exemption mechanism must be extended to SMEs and funded transparently through the national Budget instead of having Tenaga Nasional bear the costs," he said.
He also urged the government to exempt electricity consumers whose usage exceeds 800kWh from the 8% sales and service tax (SST).
"If water supplies can be exempted, why not electricity?" he asked.
In September, it was announced that electricity bill subsidies would be raised to cover up to 800kWh for domestic consumers until Dec 31 this year as an immediate step to ease cost-of-living pressures faced by households.
Households using less than 800kWh monthly are exempt from the Automatic Fuel Cost Adjustment (AFA), Retail Charges and SST.
