GEORGE TOWN: Penang Pakatan Harapan (PH) leaders have urged the government to focus on propping up the ringgit and to innovate the economy to arrest the growing concerns over the rising cost of living in the country.
In a message to mark the Christmas holiday and New Year celebrations, Kebun Bunga assemblyperson Jason Ong Khan Lee (pix) said he believed that the rising living costs could be overcome next year if the ringgit were to appreciate in value.
“Our currency is too low against major and regional currencies. We also have trade imbalances on some of them such as food import in particular,“ he said.
The country also needs a solid agriculture base to reduce dependence on imports.
Ong said the underlying root cause for rising living costs is food, and there are also affects in other areas such as the pharmaceutical products too.
The ringgit has been trading at just above RM4 to US$1 since May.
Over the same period, Ong said the living costs had affected the low-income group (B40).
His views were echoed by former Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi, who cited that the immediate attention is on the “bread and butter” issues in the country.
“We must focus on the safety nets for households earning less than RM2,500 monthly and to address the plight of the rural community, who is facing dour assessments on their oil palm, rubber and other commodities,“ he said.
“Pakatan Harapan must fix itself quick and start delivering on the economy before embarking on grandiose reforms.”
