GST registration – halt enforcement, take an educational approach

Speech by DAP Johor Chairman and MP for Kluang Liew Chin Tong at the DAP Forum Kedai Kopi/SSS Anwar Talk in Labis on Sunday, 1st March 2015

Yesterday, I spoke to a crowd of 300 in Labis town together with DAP Parliamentary Leader Lim Kit Siang, Nurul Iman, the fifth daughter of Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, and other leaders from Pakatan Rakyat.

Among other issues I discussed the plight of small businesses in face of the impending implementation of Goods and Services Tax on 1st April 2015.

I called on Deputy Minister of Finance Chua Tee Yong who is also the local Member of Parliament for Labis to have a debate on the adverse impact of GST on ordinary Malaysians especially small busineses.

I am prepared to debate him in any part of the Labis constituency and Bahasa Malaysia or English or Mandarin.

Chua Tee Yong won the seat of Labis with just a very slim majority of 353 votes in 2013.

On the implementation of GST, instead of singing its praises, he should just decend from the altar and listen to the voices of his own constituents in Labis.

Specifically, I call on Chua Tee Yong and the Barisan Nasional Federal Government to

1. Increase the threshold for businesses from RM500,000 to RM 1 million at the least and preferably RM 2 million so that small busineses do not have to act as tax collectors for the government. The administrative burden on ill-prepared small businesses is grave and should be dealt with seriously.

2. Halt any enforcement effort on business entities yet to register to collect GST. The deadline to register ended on 28th February 2015 but there should not be harsh action on small businesses amidst confusion. The Government must take an educational approach and not a punitive one.