MALACCA: MALAYSIA will gain a competitive edge in the global market if it signs the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said yesterday.
Najib, who is also finance minister, said the TPPA would attract foreign companies to invest in the country.
“In the case of the TPPA, investors will take into consideration the market’s accessibility before they decide whether to invest.
“Adopting the TPPA will give us an advantage,” Najib said in his speech at the Human Resources Ministry’s Labour Day celebrations here.
About 12,000 people turned up at the event, which was held outside Kuala Lumpur for the first time.
Najib also shared the implications of not signing the TPPA.
They included Malaysia’s dependency on the global economy because of the limited size of its domestic market.
“Unlike Indonesia and China, Malaysia does not have a large domestic market and we have to rely on the global market.
“If we lose our competitive advantage, the number of investments will decrease and we will not be able to create jobs and improve the quality of our workforce.
“These are the implications that we have to consider.”
Najib said the Goods and Services Tax (GST) would not burden the people.
It could help the government to identify tax evaders.
He said it was a misconception that the price of all goods and services would increase after the implementation.
“In fact, many necessities and services will be exempted from GST.
“Also, GST is not an additional tax scheme but a new taxation system that will replace the present Sales and Services Tax. It will ensure a more sustainable and stronger economic growth for the nation.
“GST should not be politicised. It is a new system introduced for the benefit of the people,” he said, adding the country would face serious economic problems if GST was not implemented. Additional reporting by Roshidi Abu Samah, Kelly Koh and Christina Tan