BN government will enable Malaysia to continue growing, says accountant

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KUALA LUMPUR: The mandate for the Barisan Nasional is crucial to ensure the continuity of the Economic Transformation Programme and enable the country to continue growing.

Managing Partner of Cheng and Co, Chartered Accountants, Dr Chua Hock Hoo, said the stability of the government is very important and therefore the mandate for BN is crucial.

“Government projects such as the Mass Rapid Transit are the key catalyst for the ETP overall and will enable Greater Kuala Lumpur to become a world-class conurbation.

“We have observed all National Key Economic Areas (NKEA) are progressing as per plan and there is no sign of slowing down due to the general election.

“The government is a great contributor to the improvement of the business environment and make it conducive for sustained economic growth in Malaysia,” he told Bernama during an interview.

Launched in 2010, the ETP is an initiative by the Malaysian government to turn Malaysia into a high-income economy of RM45,000 per capita by 2020 through 12 NKEAs as the key driver.

By the end of last year, it had created 313,000 jobs via 72 Entry Point Projects valued at RM179 billion and increased per capita income to RM30,000.

However, Dr Chua said the upcoming 13th General Election is unlikely to have much impact on financial markets in the middle to long term and Malaysia’s economy is expected to maintain its positive growth.

He said the Malaysian government will continue its support under the ETP aimed at achieving high-income nation status in 2020.

He also said although there could be a short-term impact ahead of the polling due to a slowdown in demand, this would not be a major factor.

“No matter what the outcome of the General Election is, there will not be a huge impact from it except for certain government-linked companies and projects,” he said.

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced the dissolution of the Dewan Rakyat to pave the way for the 13th general election.

On April 10, the Election Commission (EC) announced that Malaysians will go to the polls on Sunday, May 5.

Meanwhile, Chua said the Malaysian economy is expected to continue last year’s momentum and is expected to achieve between five to six per cent growth this year.

“Malaysia’s economy grew by 5.6 per cent in 2012 from 5.1 per cent in 2011, and we expect the momentum to continue in tandem with the recovery of the global economy,” he said. –Bernama