Times are hard and will probably get harder soon. A perfect storm of less-than-favourable economic conditions and long standing pork barrel policy practices have left Malaysians wondering what subsidy the government will cut next. The people are crying out for something to be done to ease their worries, and the government maintains as elegant a silence as it can.

The revision of Budget 2016 will be a painful exercise for Prime Minister Najib Razak. The Opposition as well as the general public will be keenly watching where he’ll make the cuts, and it’s unlikely that he’ll escape criticism whatever he decides. Some of the criticism will be unreasonable, and Najib is in the unenviable position of having to make sure that these would be the only ones he’ll hear so that he can make convincing rebuttals.

As the cost of living rises, so has public outcry against the massive allocations given to such entities as the Prime Minister’s Office, Biro Tatanegara and Jakim in the original Budget 2016.

With Health Minister S Subramaniam saying he expected to feel the bite in the revised budget, it is clear that no ministry not directly associated with Najib will be spared the harsh crack of the economic whip.

Now, obviously, some spending has got to be cut. US$15 per barrel of oil is looking less like a fever dream and more like an inevitable reality, and given that much of our national income comes from Petronas, belts will have to be tightened all around.

But if the belt is not tightened around the excessive fat of the departments dear to Najib, then the entire exercise of revising the budget is futile and will in fact be disastrous to his public image.

Najib’s alleged excesses have already implanted an image of an uncaring, out of touch, and irresponsible Prime Minister in the eyes of many people. If he doesn’t tighten the belt on his worst excesses, like the RM1.1 billion increase he gave the PMO in the now irrelevant version of Budget 2016, he’ll only alienate the people further and add fuel to the already popular perception that he cares about nothing but his own interests.

Najib has got to know that the people can only tighten their belts so much before there is nothing left to squeeze. Pressuring an already harassed people by cutting benefits while maintaining extravagant spending levels for departments like the PMO will only create more mistrust and anger. The government too must show that it is willing to sacrifice its luxuries to make sure we all make it through the trying times ahead.

It’s not just time to tighten the belt, it’s time to trim the fat, if not slice it off entirely.