KUALA LUMPUR: The 2022 budget will come with “wow factors” to benefit everyone in line with the “Keluarga Malaysia” concept, and no one will be left out in the country’s recovery after the difficulties brought about by the pandemic, the prime minister said.
Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the budget would be of high impact, encompassing aid for the B40 and M40 groups, and support for businesses to ensure that the micro, small and medium enterprises have access to funding.
“Besides continuous assistance for the vulnerable and non-vulnerable groups, the 2022 budget is disabled-friendly,” he said in an interview with the media on the budget, here today.
The budget will be tabled by finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz at the Dewan Rakyat on Friday.
Ismail said the budget would generate more jobs to tackle unemployment and to return the country and its economy to its pre-pandemic levels with new norms in place.
He added the budget had been drawn up carefully and comprehensively, taking into account the views of everyone, including opposition parties, to meet their aspiration for “Keluarga Malaysia” togetherness.
The prime minister said the finance ministry’s Budget 2022 portal received over 50,000 suggestions from the public that were taken into consideration as part of the input for the all-encompassing and transparent budget.
He said the budget also considered the input of the business sector, which had asked for tax incentives to assist companies adversely impacted by the pandemic to revive their businesses and benefit their workers.
“This budget will ensure the continuity of policies to support the people and businesses, to remain resilient in a crisis and to continue protecting their livelihoods while enabling post-pandemic innovations so they can rise again, stronger and more competitively, in tandem with the country’s development that is more sustainable and encompassing.
“In the budget this time, we are still providing aid directly to the people and micro entrepreneurs who were forced to close their business and with no capital to reopen them.”
Ismail said the government had previously implemented eight aid and economic stimulus packages amounting to RM530 billion, and if the aid was stopped too early, it could disrupt the momentum of recovery.
Source: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2021/10/27/budget-2022-has-wow-factors-to-benefit-all-says-pm/