Nullification

Jawatankuasa khas tangani krisis bekalan, harga barang

KANGAR 14 Jan. - Sebuah jawatankuasa khas akan ditubuhkan untuk menangani masalah bekalan dan harga barangan yang sering menimbulkan keresahan di kalangan pengguna seperti isu kekurangan bekalan minyak masak sejak kebelakangan ini.

Menteri Perdagangan Dalam Negeri, Koperasi dan Kepenggunaan, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (gambar) memberitahu, Jawatankuasa Bekalan dan Harga itu akan dipengerusikan oleh beliau sendiri.

Katanya, ia juga akan melibatkan wakil Kementerian Pertanian dan Industri Asas Tani, Kementerian Perdagangan Antarabangsa dan Industri (MITI), Lembaga Pemasaran Pertanian Persekutuan (FAMA) serta Lembaga Minyak Sawit Malaysia (MPOB).

"Langkah menubuhkan jawatankuasa ini untuk menyelaraskan bentuk tindakan apabila berlaku krisis berkaitan bekalan atau harga barangan di seluruh negara dan menerusi kerjasama kesemua agensi terbabit, kita dapat bertukar-tukar pandangan sebelum membuat sebarang keputusan," ujarnya.

Beliau berkata demikian pada sidang akhbar selepas melancarkan Program Bicara Tokoh dan Penyerahan Bantuan Kepada Koperasi-Koperasi Negeri Perlis anjuran bersama kerajaan negeri, Kementerian Perdagangan Dalam Negeri, Koperasi dan Kepenggunaan dan Suruhanjaya Koperasi Malaysia (SKM) di Dewan Residensi, Jalan Kolam di sini hari ini.

Turut hadir Speaker Dewan Undangan Negeri (DUN) Perlis, Datuk Yazid Mat; Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Pertanian, Industri Asas Tani dan Koperasi, Sabry Ahmad; Pengerusi Eksekutif SKM, Datuk Md. Yusof Shamsudin dan Pengarah SKM Negeri Perlis, La'anain Jamil.

Mengulas kekurangan bekalan minyak masak khususnya di kawasan utara, Ismail Sabri memberi jaminan masalah itu akan diatasi sepenuhnya menjelang Tahun Baru Cina apabila MPOB bersetuju membenarkan tambahan sebanyak 14,000 tan metrik minyak masak bagi pasaran khususnya di Perlis, Kedah dan Pulau Pinang.

"Ia sebagai tambahan kepada bekalan minyak masak iaitu 70,000 tan metrik dan dengan keseluruhan jumlah 84,000 tan metrik ini, sudah tentu tidak ada lagi masalah bekalan, cuma para pengguna diminta supaya tidak panik sehingga membelinya dengan kadar yang banyak untuk disimpan di rumah," tambah beliau.

Given the news above, there is nothing worse than terrible and miserable government policy addressing the consequences by its own hand. The government is fixing the prices; the government enforces rules while violating private property, in addition, the government urges stakeholder to produce more goods to solve the shortage. Interesting?

Indeed, the government monopolizes the means of production assuming the market has fails. The government also endorses many instruments to ensure consumers are well protected including the Acts, regulation and deploying thousand of enforcement officers across the country. Do you know how much money to meet all these requirement? Please refer and read 2011 Budget Book; it’s available in Economic Planning Unit (EPU) website. Do you know that the government is the problem here?

What about we have enough? How about we shut down the irresponsible intervention of government under the guise of moral obligation as it did to minimum wage policy? The best way to deal with many issues, be it political, be it social or be it economics, free market and individual liberty have imply to provide the solutions. Look, the government restricts competition to occur through regulation, Acts, licensing goods and services, hence, consumers don’t have many choices to decide. When I open 2011 Budget Book particularly the Ministry of Domestic Affairs, Cooperative and Consumer, the descriptions in enforcements which expect to be implemented this year take more than a million times! Ten thousand business premises will be examined; application for fleet card (diesel) relatively hit thirty thousand annually and ironically, all these items contribute higher emoluments and expensive spending on service and supplies! Big question, shall we agree that the government is feeding bureaucrats rather than solving problem. Big facts, shall we agree that the government is struggling in uncertainties arranging, even planning which again never workable.

What about the outcomes? Every showdown, the Ministry 'essentially' has something to publicize to the media on their great success in its series of enforcement operation; arresting man for smuggling, hoarding and infringe price controls regulation. Perpetrators caught, while statistics growing. Despite heavy and deadly regulation, why there are so much subsidized items for instance, sugar, cooking oil and diesel being smuggle or sell to the foreign country? Another example, Anti profiteering Act just passed recently, yet, many cases I find businesses selling their products and services with high price and gaining profits lucratively. Profits accordingly condemned, losses suffered. Regulations - Mises skirmish wise arguments goes like this; can an individual gain by restricting production? If someone else is free to increase outputs, an individual can increase his profits only by increasing outputs, not by restricting it.

If they were failed, guess what? Set up special committee or council as high as Cabinet meeting to oversee the micro part of buyers and sellers activities every day ever, now, they’re insane! Does the government know what I had bought in the past? Does the government know where I had bought my cheap clothes? Does the government have super eyes to regulate and planning all our activities? Like Tocqueville said in Democracy in America, ‘new form of servitude’

Remember this, the rule of thumb of better price for consumer is breaking the monopoly, widening the competition and let the market evolve. High prices too suddenly, consumers bemoaning and that’s for me, normal, a reaction over something shocked and perhaps, unprecedented. If Ludwig von Mises alive, he vehemently says in progressing society, they can never be stability. Theoretically, the statements I made may sounds unrealistic given the economic structure in the country. It’s a comfort zone of many of us is so intractable to dealing with.

Because of huge subsidies flowing into the market, one realizes that any attempt to withdrawal will cause riot or demonstration on the streets. Political gains much attention when it comes to ‘public interest’. Likewise, I found excellent dialogue in Atlas Shrugged “When he was asked what he would want to do, he (Eddie Willers) answered at once, “Whatever is right”, and added , “You ought to do something great…I mean, the two us together,” “What?” she asked. He said, “I don’t know. That’s what we ought to find out. Not just what you said. Not just business and earning a living. Things like winning battles”, or saving people out of fires, or climbing mountains,” “What for?” she asked. He said, “The Minister said last Sunday that we must always reach for the best within us. What do you suppose is the best within us?” “I don’t know” “We’ll have to find the way out” For my dialogue, I ultimately say deception rules! Nullify the tyranny.