Najib said yesterday that Malaysian should change their perspective on Malaysia crime rate as it is lower than in Hong Kong and Japan.
Not long ago, he said we should change our lifestyle after the prices of essential boomed sky high.
Well, as a Prime Minister in waiting, thank God he is still in the queue, he is giving advise as if we resist changes.
For ordinary people on the street, we have already adjusted our lifestyle, and be very positive on crime rate, even when we were robbed, stabbed, snatched, hit, bullied, killed (fill in the blank yourself, the list is too long to fit here), we are still living our lives, although it is a lot worse that we had when thru during the previous rounds of economic slowdown.
But, the man in the queue still want us to change.
We have downgraded our entertainment, from movie once a month to movie once a quarter, since going out for movie for two cost almost RM80 nowadays with toll, petrol, parking, tickets, food, you name it.
We have changed.
We have downgraded from eating imported Siam rice to the cheapest rice we can get in the market, i.e. 15% mixed local rice for the price of Siam rice about 1 year ago.
We have changed.
We have downgraded our sundry shopping from once a week to twice a month, and limit our spending not to exceed RM200 per shopping for sundry. RM200 a year ago can get almost double the present value.
Don't believe?
30 grade C eggs selling in Tesco a year ago before Hari Raya was RM4.80.
The price now is RM8.75
Yes, it is not double, but it is almost double!
1Kg chicken selling for RM4.99 a year ago, now selling RM6.99 as offer and normal price sometimes go up to RM7.90
Yes, it is not double, but it is almost there!
We have changed.
We were told that Malaysia wanted to be the forerunner providing high speed broadband for all, and we have patiently waiting for TM to increase their bandwidth on Streamyx. Year after year, and now we were told that the government need to spend billions to get TM to build fiber optic broadband services, yet no end product speed is specified whether we will be getting 20Mbps or 1Gbps fiber to home connection.
Meanwhile, for most other countries which has already high speed broadband, i.e. fiber to home in Japan and metropolitan areas in India, China, Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore, etc. They have been using 10Mbps or some even have 1Gbps to their home, and the fee is not as expensive as we think (just ask if TM can supply 1Gbps pipe to your house at what price, I bet they cannot do, or the price will kill you off!)
The bottom line is: Malaysia is expensive!! Living in Malaysia is expensive!!
With all the blessing from God that we have all the good mix from primary products to manufacturing, logistic, professional resources, yet we are expensive!
As a simple comparison. Take Taiwan as an example.
My wife went to Taiwan recently for her assignment. She said the food and cost of living even in Taipei is cheaper than in Kuala Lumpur.
A plate of fried oyster egg, enough for one person, is selling around NT30, which is approx RM3.30. The same in KL, smaller plate, far lesser oyster, less egg but with lots of flour, is selling minimum RM5.00.
Friend, this is almost double man!
Look at their average income, an average Taiwanese income is NT50,000, and average income for an average Malaysian is?? You have the answer.
Taiwan has no natural resources, Taiwan is constantly under Communist China's threat that they need to spend substantial portion of their national income on arms and weapons to deter China from invading them. Taiwan is an island isolated by sea, logistic is expensive as compare to Malaysia.
Why they can have cheaper cost of living yet higher income?
Even the then President Chen Shui Bian was found corrupted, and was accused that he messed up the economy, Taiwan still better than Malaysia.
Why?
We hear and see how the government wasted our money, from Eurocopter to Pempena, from Bakun to IPP. From BII to ValueCap.
Why not the Government change?
Why not Najib change?
Or
Why not we change them all?
"For your information, the total electricity cost at the court complex since its setting up (in May 2007) up till July 2008 amounts to RM5,668,596," said the minister.
