Don’t throw 50 years of hard work away, says Najib

PRIME MINISTER Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday called upon the people not to throw 50 years of hard work and dedication away by voting in the Opposition.He said the Opposition, made up of three different parties with conflicting views, was unable to even decide who among them would lead the coalition if they came to power.

“The Barisan Nasional presents you with a proven track record, while the Opposition comes to you with nothing,” he said in the “Conversation with the Prime Minister” programme aired over TV3 last night."We began our transformation programme in 2009 to bring the nation to greater heights and we can now see and feel the results of this agenda. "We have more to do and we appeal to the rakyat to give us the mandate to complete this.”

Najib Razak, who is also the finance minister, said Malaysia’s economy had become strong and was on track and had been able to buck the external global economic trend.In the last quarter, Malaysia achieved a 6.4 per cent growth, indicating the resilience of the national economy.

“I can quote you the statistics that indicate the strong resilience of our national economy,” he said.“When we talk about benefits to the people from 2009 to 2011, our Gross National Income (GNI) per capita has grown from US$6,670 to US$9,970, roughly about 49 per cent.

“There is no country in the world that has achieved this kind of result.” On the BR1M, Najib dismissed allegations that it was an election gimmick and said it was part and parcel of the BarisanNasional’s economic strategy to assist the people.
Najib Razak said the government had been giving plenty of indirect subsidies to the people, especially in the form of fuel subsidies, which was open to abuse. "However, with BR1M, we are targetting only a selected group who need this help,” he said."We have to date spent RM3 billion on BR1M, but on fuel subsidies, we spend about RM30 billion annually.”He said BR1M had also helped the local economy get stronger by giving the people a little more spending power.

Asked when the next general election would likely be held, Najib Razak said it would be held within the ambit of the the Federal Constitution.

Boost for nation’s digital economy

NEW MEASURES: Time to ensure greater inclusiveness of Digital Malaysia’s stakeholders
PUTRAJAYA: MALAYSIA has mapped out six new initiatives to drive the Digital Malaysia Programme, which is tailored to increase the information and communications technology sector’s contribution to the country’s revenue.


Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said they would be anchored on the three key strategic thrusts of Digital Malaysia, dubbed as “game changers”.
This will move Malaysia from being supply to demand focused, shift behaviours from being consumption to production-centric and evolve the country into a high knowledge-added nation.
Encompassing an ecosystem that promotes the pervasive use of ICT in all aspects of the economy, the initiatives promise real-time interactions that will result in increased Gross National Income, enhanced productivity and improved standard of living.

Speaking at the 24th MSC Malaysia Implementation Council Meeting and 15th MSC Malaysia International Advisory Panel, Najib said while Malaysia was still a new and comparatively small entrant to the global digital economy, the country was confident of its formulated strategies that would help advance it with other developed nations.

The new initiatives would focus, among others, on tapping demand for digital products and services, and increasing citizen income and unlocking entrepreneurship potential for the bottom 40 per cent (B40) of the community.Najib, who chaired the meetings, said the country needed to create effective and efficient production and marketing channels for Malaysian companies to grow their domestic and global reach.
“I approve the ‘Silicon Valley Comes to Malaysia 2′, and also a programme to attract two ICT Accelerators which will co-invest and speed up the development of local entrepreneurs, by offering advice, mentorship and practical training.”

He said with an estimated 2.4 million households living on an average monthly income of RM1,440, there was a strong need to enhance digital entrepreneurial skills of underprivileged communities, to help them develop new sources of income and improve their quality of life.

Najib, who is also finance minister, said in enhancing small and medium-enterprises’ productivity and competitiveness while increasing their contribution to the Gross Domestic Product, five new programmes would be introduced to push them towards becoming regional and global players.
To facilitate this, Najib said the MSC Corp had been instructed to start a “breakout strategy” to make it easier for the estimated 77 per cent of the country’s micro SMEs to adopt IT.

Later, at a press conference, Najib said the meeting also discussed “Spectrum Allocation”, which he said could be a new way of disbursing allocations, by opening up more opportunities through partnerships with the private sector.
From the discussions yesterday, he said there were significant opportunities in the field of talent, entrepreneurship and commerce that could drive the economy of the future, if the right investments in people and technologies were made.
Najib said with plans already in place, the time had come to ensure greater inclusiveness of Digital Malaysia’s stakeholders.
“Government, industries and our community must now work together to harness opportunities that the digital economy has to offer.

“It is imperative that we lend our voices and take the necessary action to drive the actualisation of a digital economy, which can spur Malaysia’s transformation.”
Najib also said the Digital Malaysia Programme was reaching its target of increasing the country’s Gross National Income to 17 per cent, creating 160,000 high-value jobs.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak presenting the Malaysia Apicta 2012 Award to the founder of Adavista Sdn Bhd, Azli Paat (second from left), at the 15th MSC Malaysia International Advisory Panel meeting in Putrajaya yesterday. With them are Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin (left), Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili (second from right) and IAP invitee Guo Jun Feng. Pic by Fariz Iswadi Ismail
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