More thoughts on Budget 2013

Using the analogy of food, the newly announced budget is like cake. Sweet, nothing but carbohydrates and fat but no nutritional value at all. In other words, hardly any substance.

No macro economic reforms, no innovative measures, no tough / disciplined measures to fix problems. Nothing at all.

So to call it an election budget is really the understatement of the year.

Well, when you eat cake, you'll  feel happy for a while, the sugar buzz is great but after a while, you will be hungry again and your body hasn't gotten any protein or vitamins at all!

This budget is like a short term sugar high. One clear example, the RM200 smartphone subsidy. Those young kids who get the subsidy are still going to fork out more just to buy the phone AND have to pay for the monthly data plan. So how is that helping them? Sigh.. expect more sexting and dumb comments on twitter, facebook et al and definitely more hook ups and booty calls when they get onto the hookup apps!

Is the 200 bucks going to help them in any way? Probably a small number but the majority will be instagramming away the dull things they eat or do.. did I mention I'm getting cynical in my old age? Realistic, katanya!

What I really wish to have in a budget are:

1. Agricultural reforms - not just subsidies but need to look at total land usage, granting permanent licences, food security i.e. essentials like rice production, upgrading vegetable production and so on. Although I am invested in palm oil and the govt is really concentrating on this cash crop, we still need to diversify.
2. Liberalise the financial sector (e.g. credit cards) and close the loopholes - like money changers being able to transfer sums, money laundering etc. Too much cash is flowing around in the underground.
3. Tighten property purchasing - the current measures of 70% financing on the 3rd property is not effective if the speculators are buying in cash (see point no 2), Your genuine buyers are getting locked out of it as developers cater more for the really cash-rich buyers (with no questions asked about the source of their funds), so this is one very convenient loophole to park your money for a few years, sell off the property and there you go: clean money.
4. Education - seriously, stop throwing money into opening colleges and universities of dubious quality! The so-called graduates who come out from there are barely better than SPM school leavers. I'd divert more resources into technical training and skills certification like plumbing, cooking, electrical work, construction. agricultural work and so on. 
5. Get rid of the subsidies - they distort the economy, create inefficiencies and actually even cause health problems (sugar and cooking oil subsidies) - I think we're the only SE Asian country that has so many deep-fried & sugary snacks being sold everywhere and for very cheap too! I don't see that so much in Thailand or Indonesia, the street food there seems to be (slightly) healthier in that they are more fresh-ingredient based and not deep fried as much. I see more grilled stuff and definitely not as sweet (ok, Thai drinks are sweet too, I'll grant you that and the disturbing thing is that it is getting more prevalent.. guess as their economy grows, they will adopt more of a sweet tooth).

Finally, if we want to be tough on corruption, do like what South Africa did - have the amnesty / reconciliation thing: give back 70% or 80% of what you took, you get to keep some and you leave the public stage and all is forgiven. Not forgotten but forgiven and we can all MOVE ON and create a much more mature political system and developed economy.

I'm beggin' ya, please! We have to move on from where we are now.