TEKS UCAPAN

YAB DATO’ SERI ANWAR BIN IBRAHIM

PERDANA MENTERI MALAYSIA

 

  

MAJLIS SAMBUTAN TAHUN BARU CINA ACCCIM 2025

3 FEBRUARI 2025 | ISNIN | 11.45 PAGI

HOTEL SHANGRI-LA KUALA LUMPUR

Assalamualaikum dan Salam Sejahtera serta hadirin yang dimuliakanang dimuliakan.

Rakan-rakan Menteri, Jemaah Menteri.

Kalau saudara lihat kehadiran ramai menteri ini menunjukkan keyakinannya kepada kumpulan peniaga dan tahniah kepada ACCCIM.

YBhg Datuk Ng Yih Pyng,

Presiden Gabungan Dewan Perniagaan dan Perindustrian Cina Malaysia (ACCCIM);

Menteri, Timbalan Menteri dan juga Pesuruhjaya Tinggi serta Duta-duta yang juga hadir, juga menunjukkan bahawa negara negara asing juga turut mengikuti perkembangan dalam negara kita dan peranannya ACCCIM selama ini yang membantu menjana pertumbuhan yang melalui meyakinkan.

1. Saya tentunya berasa gembira dan mewakili rakan-rakan Menteri dan Timbalan Menteri yang hadir. Terima kasih atas kesudian Datuk Ng Yih Pyng dan jawatankuasa ACCCIM yang menganjurkan majlis dan tentu dalam majlis mengambil peluang untuk kemukakan satu dua isu yang memaksa Perdana Menteri respons.

2. Tetapi hari ini merupakan majlis Hari Raya Cina dan kita sambut meriah di merata pelusuk negara ini, menunjukkan semangat perpaduan, persahabatan dan dalam hampir semua majlis perayaan kita lihat walaupun tajaannya masyarakat Cina, tetapi sambutannya oleh semua kaum dan ini saya ucapkan satu tahniah kepada rakyat Malaysia yang merangkul kekuatan ini.

3. Ge wei lai bin da jia hao dan saya orang Pulau Pinang dia panggil Gong Xi Fa Choi, senang dalam Hokkien ini kita besar dalam dunia Hokkien. Tapi kalau di Kuala Lumpur ini YB Anthony Loke pesan saya bagi bahasa yang baik sikit, jadi Xin Nian Kuai le, Xin Nian Hao, Nian Nian Hao.

 

4. Pagi tadi Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong merasmikan Sidang Parlimen dan membentangkan beberapa angka kejayaan kita dari sudut pertumbuhan ekonomi dan jumlah pelaburan yang meningkat, tumpuan semikonduktor, data centre dan digital, AI, serta usaha-usaha kita dalam bidang transisi tenaga dari Paka ke Pasir Gudang, ke Sarawak, dan juga usaha-usaha ACCCIM dengan minat yang bertambah.

5. Dan semalam dalam perbincangan dengan Dr. Taksin yang saya lantik sebagai penasihat kepada pengerusi ASEAN juga dihadiri oleh rakan saya mantan Menteri Luar Singapura, George Yeo, kita tumpu beberapa hala tuju penting bagi pandangan, nasihat kepada saya bagaimana hendak bawa ASEAN ini biar ke depan. Politiknya stabil, keadaan biar aman, hubungan dengan negara luar baik, ada yang lama dengan Amerika Syarikat, Eropah dan berkembang pesat dengan negara China, kerana peranan China yang lebih strategik dari segi geopolitik dan juga ekonomi. Tumpuan kepada isu tenaga, peralihan, tenaga atau tenaga baharu termasuk yang disebut ASEAN Energy Grid dari negara-negara yang dulunya Indo-cina ke Thailand, ke Malaysia, Singapura ke Batam, Indonesia. Dari Sarawak, Sabah ke selatan Filipina. Jadi tumpuan kita itu ialah menjadikan Malaysia pusat penting dan rantau ini dengan pelaburan yang sangat tinggi sekarang dalam bidang tenaga sahaja.

6. Dan kemudian tentu kita bincang soal digital termasuk blockchain, belum ada keputusan muktamad tapi Malaysia mesti bersedia berbincang dan pemimpin-pemimpin kabinet umpamanya ambil sikap terbuka. Mesti keluar daripada pemikiran, kepompong lama. Apa sahaja yang mungkin yang boleh menjadikan Malaysia ini negara maju, tidak ketinggalan kita mesti cari jalan.

7. Seperti mana yang saya sering tekankan kita tidak mempunyai semua jawapan maka kita harus memanfaatkan golongan akademik, pakar-pakar di luar dan yang penting Dato Ng Yih Pyng seperti mana saya tersebut keperluan gabungan Dewan-dewan Perniagaan Malaysia, Cina, Melayu, India, Sabah dan Sarawak mendapatkan pandangan mereka bagaimana sebagai satu pasukan kita bekerja cari jalan untuk tingkatkan lagi.

8. Mahu jadi pemimpin yang berkesan apa lagi negara Malaysia yang pelbagai rencam ini kepentingan harus kita dengar, manfaatkan pandangan-pandangan mereka. Jadi saya beri jaminan kepada Dato Ng Yih Pyng dan jawatankuasa, kita akan ambil serius pandangan dikemukakan oleh semua sektor tentunya kita tidak boleh tinggalkan kelompok miskin, miskin bandar, petani, nelayan, penternak dan pekebun.

9. Tapi untuk menjana pertumbuhan ekonomi yang lebih segar peranan peniaga-peniaga pengusaha dan dewan-dewan perniagaan sangat penting. Jadi saya harap jawatankuasa induk yang saya cuba wujudkan dalam masa singkat itu dapat penyertaan dan sumbangan yang lebih berkesan dari rakan-rakan.

10. Now i’m standing the importance of a the entire team, the effort of political leaders, government Ministers in particular with the private sector academicians, the professionals, and experts in various fields and the clearly the chamber. Dato Ng Yih Pyng and your team has important role to give your views because not only the uncertainties, but to ensure that we become the dynamo to propel the economy, attract investments and ensure that we give our best.

 

11. This adjustment necessary, while they say because of the recent pronouncement by President Donald Trump, not necessarily so in the economic sure there’s always faces when there is this necessity to undertake some measures, changes, new technology. The AI dictate and demand us to make major adjustments in the entire system, education. Now we talk about data center, AI slow change in the education, nothing in the public health sector or no new initiative to allow them to allow Malaysia to become more attractive as a investment destination that will not work, so it is a more systemic approach that requires the thinking the experts, the import of all.

 

12. So, what i’m trying suggest is to a peer to all to give your best because this is an opportunity. You not always that political leadership take a very open liberal view to accept, to learn from one another and to be considered to be part of this big team. And geopolitical conditions other than AI again dictate us to make the necessary adjustments. I have always felt we must start at home which means political system, the issue of governance all that need to be done to ensure that we are efficient, we have a clarity and correct policies, we have to do.

 

13. Don’t talk about problems outside. Yes, some issues are beyond us, are somewhat insurmountable, not within our means and capacity but they are. What are those? The correct policy prescriptions, are making the right emphasis, focus on energy transition. Are we taking major measures to ensure that the Digital Transformation is working. Is artificial intelligence (AI) going to give us the benefit and are we prepared in terms of our educational strategy, our focus, our disbursement of funds, our training that can make us really an effective nation in terms of utilizing this new technology.

 

14. These are all issues that we need to hear and then at the fast phase, take it up and make the necessary change. We don’t have the luxury of time. You are not living in the 60’s or 70’s and geopolitical dictates are sometimes beyond us. But the domestic policies in economy can be our major focus. I’m not saying that we can act independently, oblivious to the changes, no, but the areas that we need to improve including our level of efficiency, the fast track of approvals, cleaning up the mess, raiding the country of corruption and the abuses of commissions, making sure that decisions are made transparently.

 

15. These things are within our means and it takes the effort, the resolve of all of us and that’s why I’m suggesting again both bureaucrat and the business community and academia together with the political leaders to consider ourselves this new team of having making this major breakthrough to ensure that Malaysia emerge as very important economy all the within our means accepting the fact that we are you know, relatively smaller country, but we have that capacity.

 

16. I was very pleased for example with the exchanges that we have continue with China of course excellent. Even with United States we will continue to engage, contrary to some views. They do not know we are, the ambassador here and in Europe, exceptional perception that we receive. They’ve agreed to proceed with this fast track free trade agreements (FTAs) with the European Union (EU) which is certainly out of question in the last few years. With United Kingdom (UK), we have an excellent meeting with the Prime Minister Keir Starmer, concluded the FTA with UK which means that their investment here and our investment there will benefit immensely through this sort of facilitation by the trade agreements. That we will do and we will continue to do.

 

17. Datuk Ng Yih Pyng mentioned that the idea that we promoted to have ASEAN Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) with Chinese presence and we are now thinking opening up to allow participations of other countries, including United States or European Union but the focus is of course the region. The region means Asian and our neighbors and because of the reception and the friendship shown by China, we are reciprocating as great, trusted friends. You have seen for example, the visit by Premier Li Qiang and the commitment that they give of course we as a nation would welcome that and I thank again the Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) for your support Tan Sri Dato’ Low, kalau tak, salah sebut marah nanti (nada seloroh), for making sure that the visit was success. I remember meeting him afterwards. And he tends to remind me Anwar, I’m so pleased with the visit and I thank you to the great visit and the friendship and the shown by Malaysians. It is something that’s close to my heart. In fact, he told me that I even shared this with my wife and my daughter. Which is rare for leaders to share unless they really feel that it was really successful and great visit. This is a done successfully because not only government efforts, thank you. I mean my cabinet ministers did the best and the government servant did the best because of the commitment and support by the chamber. So xie xie ge wei again.

 

18. So Datuk Ng do a bit more, it’s not always the Prime Minister can praise you. So, you better make sure that you do a bit more, right (joking). Now you raised two points, but I think there is some confusion. On the first, is on the issue of ICPT the transfer, the electricity rate is not 14%. No! you know the six-month review is based on the current price. So, I don’t think it would be to a large extent the cumbersome or disadvantage to the community. We are prepared to listen. The decision is to me something which need to be done because prices has to rise according to the capacity in the price at the particular period. But it certainly is not to be. That’s why I just checked with Zafrul in case I get the facts wrong. Certainly, it is not the case. I think there was some confusion because the way the announcements were made, but this was corrected. It is not the case. Slight increase, I mean, untung sikit bayar sikitlah, otherwise how do I improve the education quality? How do I help the poor? How do I improve the roads? How do I then improve the medical services through some minor tax to the company seller. Small, small, don’t worry.

19. The other thing is about the levy. The foreign workers levy must be done. But there was some confusion that you’re going to be cumulative 2 and then 4 and it is no! So, we kept it at 2%, which is very, very minimal. Well, the initial proposal was 12 and the cabinet did consider the appeal by the chambers. So, we just kept it at 2% and we will stay on sometime until things you know much better than Datuk Ng and Tan Sri Low register hundreds of millions or billions of profits, then we make increase 4. But, for now we keep it at 2 and let us move with that sort of a decision. And there’s no worry about having it cumulative unless Steven Sim feels strongly to increase, otherwise we’ll keep it at that rate first.

20. But, I must appeal to you also because the demands are more for example education, as you know, I’ve been talking about digital energy transformation. If we don’t have new faculties, new training, and they require anonymous sums of money. You see in the past, United States or Europe or China how what they have done in focusing on this centre of excellence that requires not only government funds but also huge private sector investment. But I agree with you, Datuk Ng whatever is necessary, we need to be done to facilitate, improve business, including SMEs. We will do our best.

21. So sekali lagi saya ucap terima kasih. Saya tak mahu lebih daripada itu, kalau tak approved nanti dia tak bagi makan (nada bergurau). Jadi saya ucap terima kasih, I mean you have been very helpful.

Xie xie ge wei.

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