Well that seems to be the gist of the review of the National Automotive Policy or NAP. Has anyone noticed that the acronym NAP means to sleep?
And our brave MSM (mainstream media) said today “the National Automotive Policy (NAP) has been comprehensively overhauled to ensure a healthier automobile industry. However, there was no indication if there would be any reduction in the price of cars.”
It means its just back to square one. There is no break for you and me – the long suffering citoyen, the masses, the proletariat, the worker ants. We will still be paying the highest prices for cars in the world with our Third World salaries.
We will be paying up to RM100,000 for a locally assembled 2000cc Perdana when for the same price (USD29,000) people in other countries like the US can easily buy a Mercedes Benz 200 CLK - 2010 model !
I dont get the part about “ending a freeze on manufacturing licenses for luxury cars” above 1800cc. First of all define what exactly is manufacturing? Assembly is also classified as manufacturing.
What is the big deal about “unfreezing licenses” ? First of all it is not as if there are hundreds of car manufacturers waiting to rush into the vacuum. There are hardly a dozen big car makers left in the world anyway. And they have all been here for decades.
Toyota, Mercedes, Volvo, Honda have always had some assembly (manufacturing) presence here. So they can continue to do what they have always been doing here (assembly etc) but now they dont need to apply for a license ? So the office boy has one less borang to isi once a year? Big deal.
Looks like the NAP is easing up on something that does not make much difference.
And it will definitely not make major car makers start coming to Malaysia in droves either. Not likley at all.
Almost every car manufacturer in the world has serious manufacturing plants in Thailand, where Thailand imposes a minimum tax (or duty) of 5% on cars and parts. Toyota has a 1.0 million square meter Toyota gateway plant in Thailand. By the way, this 5% duty is supposed to be part of the AFTA Agreement that we have signed. How come we are not following the AFTA?
In Bangkok and the rest of Thailand today there are almsot no Kancil type cars on the roads. The smallest cars in Thailand are Toyota Vios or Honda Citi. The Thais drive better cars than we do and pay much less for their cars too than we do. In Thailand the 1500cc Toyota Vios costs about 504,000 baht (about RM50,000). Over here the Vios costs RM75,000 or more. The Perodua Viva 1.0 litre costs RM40,000.
So we are not able to achieve a higher standard of living for our people or lower their cost of living either. Our people have to pay the highest cars prices in the world. Why?
The Minister says the Government collects RM6 - 7 billion a year from car duties and taxes. So the Government needs the revenue. This is not an answer.
The Government has acknowledged, in the Auditor General's Report, that it loses up to RM28 billion in poor management of expenditure. The Government has paid RM42,000 for a laptop computer. They invested RM500.0 million in some aircraft manufacturing in the US and just lost the money. Cut the waste and dont burn the taxpayers money. And dont burden the taxpayer anymore.
Also the AP holders are making billions of Ringgit with little or no real benefit to anyone, even to themselves.
On the other hand if the car market is freed up, more benefits will certainly, most definitely accrue to the Malaysian economy. The resources that are freed up, the taxpayers money that is saved, the citizens monthly living expenses that are reduced, will all be channelled elsewhere within the economy. We must have faith in the basic laws of economics. As long as we stick to economic efficiencies there will positive outcomes. But if we keep supporting innefficiencies, there will be a huge price to pay.
When she was the Minister of the MITI, Rafidah Aziz once said that APs would be removed. That was years ago. The AP’s are still around.
Now the Governments says Open APs (aka cap duit APs given to cronies) will be in place until 2015. Why 2015?
It looks like “People First, Performance Now” has become ‘AP Holders First, People Later, Performance Also Later’.
The Minister says the long time frame until 2015 is needed to give time for the Open AP holders to adjust themselves to the new life (a life without cap duit APs) and also give them time to develop new businesses. Here is the quote :
“The termination of the (open) AP system by 2015 will provide an interim period for AP holders to diversify and venture into other businesses,”
Does this include the AP holders who do not even own a car showroom? Yes folks, there were such creatures too. Showroom kereta tak ada, tapi AP dapat beribu-ribu.
Oh boo hoo. Someone get me a handkerchief – I cant help the tears. The poor Open AP holders. They may have to do some other real business and do real work to keep their helicopters and swimming pools.
I really cannot believe the Minister said such a thing. They really do not listen to what they say.
Firstly just how many Open AP holders are there? I dont know if the AP King guy with the helicopter landing pad in his house is still in the AP business? But how many Open AP holders are there? 100? 1000? 10,000? How many?
And the rest of us 28 million people have to pay the highest car prices in the world, to give sufficient time to these easy money parasites to learn to diversify their income over the next six years so that they can still maintain their helicopter pads and swimming pools?
And why do we need franchise APs ? I believe franchise APs are APs that go with the name of the car. For example there may be APs just for Toyotas. If Toyota has been importing Toyota cars into the country (since the early 1960s) why do they need APs? And even franchise APs are given to cronies who then make a cut from selling it.
But here is the soalan cepu mas : what really is an AP? What does it do to the value of the car or towards improving the standard of living of the average Malaysian? Can someone answer this first?
The ministry also has a sense of humour. They say “Malaysia will from 2010 also offer tax incentives for development of hybrid and electric vehicles”
Hybrid cars are technology intensive. No car maker is going to come to Malaysia – with our world record taxes and duties imposed against car imports - to develop hybrid technologies here. Please stop insulting the intelligence of the suffering public.
We are still manufacturing left over Japanese Mitsubishis (Proton) and left over Daihatsus (Perodua). There is no chance for our car makers to develop our own hybrid technologies in such a small and heavily protected market. Our market and technology inefficiencies are just too acute.
Even if the car makers want to invest in hybrid technology, it will possibly happen in Thailand but even Thailand is too small a market to develop indigenous hybrid technology.
In brief these measures are not aimed at making the motor sector more competitive. Malaysia will find it extremely difficult to become a regional auto hub in competition with neighboring Thailand.
And why prohibit the import of used cars from 2015, and used automotive parts and components from June 2011? Kenapa begitu seronok hendak menyusahkan manusia saja? The import of recon cars has served the public well. At least they have a chance to buy good quality cars at fairly decent prices. Now, itu pun tak boleh ke? Kenapa syok sangat nak menyusahkan orang?
As for Proton, the time has come for them to be cut lose. Compete or just roll over and die. 25 years is too long a burden on the poor public. Proton punya pasal, orang Melayu yang jadi miskin sekarang. It was a good experiment. We have learnt a lot from the Proton experience (yes I can hear the sniggers). But we have to face the facts. Proton cannot survive anymore without burdening the people’s pocket.
I fear that Proton is going to become an election issue that we just cannot answer anymore. The ‘some more what issue can tok ah’ Opposition may just make car prices a big Election issue. The pro Government Bloggers like BigDog, Voice, Rocky, Marahku, Jebat Must Die, Parpukari, me and others are going to have a tougher time speaking up for the Government on this one.
Datuk Syed Abdull Hafiz Syed Abu Bakar says the company’s internal surveys showed there is a big demand among Perodua customers for a MPV
