Minister: Don’t protest over fuel hike, be grateful

 Quigonbond: Is the sorry excuse of a minister joking? Respect begets respect. I don’t see how this government is respecting the people when corruption is rampant, abuse of power such as the sedition blitz continues unabated, and policies such as this petrol hike have multiplying effect.

The weak and defenceless are easiest to pick on. Traders will simply pass on the cost. In the end, the lower income group suffers.

They think controversial Facebooker Alvin Tan is fair game because the opposition also criticises him, but that’s where Domestic Trade, Cooperative and Consumerism Minister Hasan Malek is sorely mistaken.

Malaysians are discerning enough to detach the message from the messenger. No doubt we dislike the messenger for being an unrepentant exhibitionist.

But his message resonates with what majority Malaysians have been saying all along, that criticising and insulting Umno is not sedition. It can never be because you’re a political party – if you don’t want to be criticised, don’t be in politics.

Negarawan: Hasan has the audacity to declare this petrol price hike as a “minimal” increase. He does not know what living below the poverty line means to millions of underprivileged Malaysians.

The domino effect will mean that prices of all essential goods will increase again, further pressuring low-income earners and their families. At the end of the day, many of them have no choice but to resort to some sort of crime just to survive.

And here we have Umno people like Hasan who live in palatial homes, with their petrol-guzzling luxury cars, who do not feel any pinch whatsoever but are ever willing to give free advice to the poor not to protest, to demand undeserved respect, to remind people how financially sound the Umno government is, and harping on unrelated topics like Alvivi ad nauseum.

Well, the rakyat are not fools, and have had enough of Umno’s antics, empty promises, and wanton wastage of public money through corruption and mismanagement. It’s time for Umno to take a hike.

Rojak: With a few possible exceptions, such as our parents, no one deserves respect or gratitude simply for being who they are, but they will earn it quite naturally if they behave decently.

Citizens may even accept price rises if they feel their government is honest and doing its best for them. If you don’t feel respected and appreciated, dear minister, may I politely suggest you consider your own conduct before criticising the rakyat.

Justice Pao: According to BBC, “Oil price hits two-year low after Saudi price cut”, and yet these politicians in BN tell us that they need to increase the price of petrol to slash subsidies.

By right, the price of petrol should be reduced by 20 sen or more as we are saving more in the lower cost of oil around the world.

I guess that the BN robbers must have emptied the national coffers and realised belatedly that there is no money left for BR1M (Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia), for salaries to civil servants or other expenses so the excuse to raise the price of petrol.

Iiiizzzziiii: Now I think I have seen and heard it all in Malaysia – be grateful and thankful to the leaders from BN for they are doing an excellent job of saving the country finances.

This was once a great nation blessed with so much resources, and today this nation is drowning in debts and is at the brink of bankrupt. How can this be?

Should we be grateful to incompetent leaders with no discipline, ethics and principle for bringing the nation wealth to total meltdown? Indeed, what is purpose of setting up 1MDB in the first place?

And now we have a minister admonishing the people to be grateful to the leaders from BN, woefully lacking the compassion and understanding of the people’s hardship and suffering.

I will be most grateful if there is a change in the government, giving the opposition a chance to govern and manage the country wealth. Yes, this is what I will be most grateful for.

Guns ‘n’ Roses: Hasan, tell us honestly, if you have one bit of self-respect and dignity in you, why our national coffers are being depleted, and rapidly too, at that.

The unsavoury reasons are too many to enumerate here, and they are public knowledge. And what has happened to that infamous well-connected Deepak Jaikishan’s sweetheart Bank Rakyat deal under your kind patronage?

May I humbly request for a similar sweetheart deal, also under your magnanimous patronage, but for a minuscule RM200,000 education, not business, loan (fully payable with no interest, hopefully) to fund my two children’s private medical university education, since they failed to qualify for public universities despite having CGPA of 4.0?

Tentarik: Mr Minister, to strengthen the country’s finances, first and foremost cut the subsidies to the IPPs (independent power producers), get rid of direct negotiation for government contracts, review/do away with APs (approved permits) and there endless opportunities for the government to improve its finances.

You ask the rakyat to be grateful for the 20 sen price. Why don’t you ask the PM to stop being a spendthrift? How about a pay cut on the ministers salary? You should take the lead, only then you can ask the rakyat to be grateful.

Anonymous_3e86: So the idea is fill up the government coffers so that BN politicians can keep on doing shady deals with their cronies?

Gotcha: I regret my past deed in voting for BN because of their wonderful promises and pledges. Since promises and pledges cannot be kept, one must learn to ignore them.

Anyway I have already beginning today started looking for a secondhand motorbike.

Hasan, thank you for the petrol hike

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