PETALING JAYA: Government policies have been favouring big businesses for too long and the impact is being most acutely felt by the poor, claims a non-governmental organisation.
In a statement, today, the Social Protection Contributors Advisory Association Malaysia (SPCAAM) today said it was time for the government to assess factors such as the frustrations of the rural poor and the working poor, and whether government policies have been able to assist them in alleviating their hardship.
“Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has asked for more time to address the issues that are afflicting the people and this is understandable given the malaise he inherited.
“Nevertheless, the people especially the poor are in dire straits. Their trust and patience in the government and the reform agenda will not stretch on for too long,“ said its International Labour Advisor Callistus Antony D’Angelus.
He said the Prime Minister should examine how his coalition is serving his reform agenda.
“The likes of the DAP have done well to secure the seats which they are holding for now but have not contributed to the wider
interests of the unity government,“ he said.
He also said that the stereotyping of Malaysians along racial lines was embarrassing and must be stopped.
“Time is not on the side of the new government. It is either a case of some drastic changes being made in the short term and the fruits of it being seen by the public before the next general elections or be content with being a one-term government,“ he said.
