Many business groups that FMT Business approached for comments opted to keep their views to themselves.
For instance, the Malaysian Employers Federation and the Malaysian Photovoltaic Industry Association chose not to comment, citing “sensitivities”.
The two that responded focused largely on the few items on their wish list for Budget 2023 that was tabled by Anwar only a week ago to give a more positive take on his performance.
Small and Medium Enterprises Association Malaysia (Samenta) chairman William Ng feels that Anwar has “walked the talk” on supporting small businesses.
“From Day One, the prime minister has emphasised that the survival and growth of SMEs counted among his core objectives. Despite the political and economic reality, I think he delivered on his promise,” Ng said.
On the other hand, he believes Anwar came up short in other areas. For instance, he said, the goods and services tax (GST) should have been re-introduced but at a lower rate.
This sentiment was shared by industry groups and economists whose consensus is that it is necessary given the need to ensure the government’s fiscal sustainability.
Ng said that while the government has met certain requests from SMEs such as providing an allocation to help them go digital and to empower them, there are areas that have yet to be dealt with.
For instance, he said, there is a need to reduce the role of the government in business and coordination among ministries and government agencies is necessary to speed up the approval process so that SMEs can be freed up to attend to more urgent matters.
While Electric Vehicle Association of Malaysia (Evam) president Dennis Chuah praised Anwar for his performance thus far, he also stressed that there still is room for improvement.
He too focused on the budget, describing it as “a step in the right direction”.
Under budget 2023, electric vehicles (EVs) have been granted tax exemptions, while businesses that opt to include EVs in their fleet are entitled to the green technology financing scheme (GTFS).
However, Chuah said, the budget incentives could have been more inclusive and supportive of EV manufacturers.
Instead, the government has decided to grant exemptions on import and excise duties on completely built-up (CBU) electric vehicles until Dec 31, 2024.
An exemption on the fees on approved permits has also been granted under the 2023 budget for the import of EVs. This will be effective until Dec 31 this year.
For the record, there is no requirement, constitutional or statutory, for an assessment of a prime minister’s first 100 days in office.
The term was first coined by US President Franklin D Roosevelt in a radio address during his term of office in the 1930s.
Since then, it has been widely used as a measure of the ability of a leader to take stock of a situation and to begin taking action.