KUALA LUMPUR: Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has taken a jab at Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli over the sliding ringgit by reposting a 2017 Facebook post by the Pandan MP.
"I'm just copy-pasting it (the Facebook post), don't be upset," said Najib.
In that 2017 post when Najib was prime minister, Rafizi said the value of the ringgit was important because many goods especially food items were imported.
"Furthermore, the prices of petrol and diesel are calculated based on the reference prices in US dollars. Therefore, even if the global price of crude oil has decreased, the prices of petrol and diesel can still remain high due to the low value of the ringgit," Rafizi said in the post.
He said then that the value of the ringgit was determined by supply and demand in the currency market which was "heavily influenced" by the country's economic climate.
"Thus, the low value and performance of the Ringgit compared to other regional currencies indicate weaknesses in the economic and financial administration of the government," Rafizi said.
Najib's status comes as the ringgit hit a 26-year low against the greenback, hitting the RM4.80 mark and RM3.57 against the Singapore dollar.
Bank Negara Governor Datuk Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour has said the ringgit's current level does not fully reflect the Malaysian economy's prospects.
Abdul Rasheed said the recent performance of the ringgit, similar to other regional currencies, has been influenced by external factors.