Chong said the 2021 Budget, which was tabled on Nov 9, 2020, stated estimated revenues as RM10 billion but the actual revenue collected was RM7.6 billion. – Bernama photo
KUCHING (Nov 25): An Opposition backbencher told the august House today that the 2021 Sarawak Budget had shown “huge differences” between estimates and actual figures.
Chong Chieng Jen (DAP-Padungan) said the 2021 Budget, which was tabled on Nov 9, 2020, stated estimated revenues as RM10 billion but the actual revenue collected was RM7.6 billion.
“As compared to the estimates, there was a shortfall of about RM3 billion. As for the operating expenditure, the estimate was RM3.8 billion but the actual expenditure was RM5.8 billion.
“For the development expenditure, it was estimated at RM6.3 billion but the figure shown for actual spending was RM5.3 billion,” he said when debating the Sarawak Budget 2023.
Chong thus urged the state government to explain these huge differences.
On a separate matter, he called on the state government to postpone the imposition of the five per cent state sales tax on imported tyres for three years.
He said the state sales tax on imported tyres, which is being implemented, had made the prices for imported tyres in Sarawak the highest in the country.
He said this did not go along with the GPS tagline ‘Sarawak First’ as it is not time to add costs on to transport, food and goods since the state and the country are still on the road to economic recovery.
On the Borneo Semariang Housing Project, Chong said the house buyers had paid up to 95 per cent of their loan but their houses were still not completed.
“And they cannot occupy those units which are without the OPs. Meanwhile, they are still paying the loan. It is a heavy burden for those house buyers,” he added.
He hoped that the state government would come up with certain measures to help these house buyers.