KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 — Malaysians must be rational over the local equity ownership policy as it would be a grave disservice to allow a company to continue making losses just to maintain the 100 per cent local ownership, International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said.
“As stated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak this morning, we have to be rational. Are we willing to let our company continues to bleed, with the government pumping in money every year just to keep the 100 per cent local ownership?
“This is a very irrational act,” he told reporters on the sidelines the distribution of bubur lambuk (porridge) hosted by the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation, here today.
Mustapa said if the government were to provide subsidies to this company every year just to keep the majority or 100 per cent local ownership, eventually it would destroy the country’s economy.
By doing so, Malaysia will not be competitive, as it will be spending money, that should have been spent to build hospitals and roads, he said.
Mustapa said the equity acquisition policy was not new and in the manufacturing field, a 100 per cent foreign ownership was allowed by the International Trade and Industry Ministry.
“Our policy is liberal, not only in manufacturing, but also in other areas, although we may not allow 100 per cent (equity ownership), we allow foreign participation. And that’s the reality as we want our country to progress.
“If we just expect our own people to invest and not welcoming outsiders, this is unwise and irrelevant,” he said.
“We live in a world that is increasingly global and increasingly integrated, with a lot of investment from Asean countries, while Malaysia also invests abroad.
“Malaysia’s overseas investments exceed foreign investments in our country and if you want to say Malaysia is being colonialised, then Malaysia can be considered a colonialist,” he added. — Bernama
