Anwar: We’ll educate public to reject GST

Lisa J. Ariffin

| December 18, 2013

Anwar Ibrahim has hit out at the federal government for trying to mislead the public on the implications of GST.

PETALING JAYA: PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim said Pakatan Rakyat will continue efforts to educate the public to reject the implementation of the goods and services tax (GST).

“I believe that if the people come together we can stop its implementation which is scheduled for 2015,” said Anwar.

He said Pakatan had never dismissed the implementation of GST and had even acknowledged that it could be beneficial to the country.

“However, we have to look at other studies. Until you revamp the entire system to ensure there is no wastage or corruption, that is when you can implement,” he said.

He added that BN’s lacked initiative to resolve the illicit money outflow and trying to mislead the public on the implications of GST.

“The GST will not have a big effect on the outflow of illicit money, what more on the export sales overseas,” Anwar told reporters at press conference here.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is backing of the federal government’s decision to cut subsidies this year and eventually introduce the GST.

“The IMF is right, but we must look at the details.

“We are not questioning the fact that GST is a more transparent and efficient method, but there are certain pre-conditions that have to be met,” he said.

“Why can’t we deal with the extra wastage and corruption first? Why can’t we ensure that the standard of living of the people are further enhanced before the implementation?” he asked.