Cheerleaders rah-rah while billionaires boom
Lose some, mint some.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s government wants RM10 billion shaved off the 2026 operating budget by May 15.
Health is being asked to give up RM3.06 billion; higher education, RM2.39 billion; and education, another RM466 million.
The reason?
A fuel subsidy bill that has ballooned from RM15 billion budgeted to RM58.4 billion projected, courtesy of the US-Iran war and a government reluctant to bite the political bullet ahead of an election.
The easy take writes itself.
Anwar the populist, choosing petrol pumps over hospital wards.
And it’s not wrong: there’s something off about the health ministry surrendering RM3.06 billion so the rest of us can keep filling up cheap.
But the more interesting question is whether this is genuinely the best idea we have?
In today’s newsletter:
➜ eFishery’s Malaysian fingerprint. The Indonesian founder is now nine years into a fraud sentence. But questions don’t stop in Jakarta as Malaysia has two state entities, KWAP and Mavcap.
➜ Every billionaire’s a policy failure creature. The extraordinarily wealthy are set to grow, even under a PM who built his political life on “reform.”
You’re reading The Malaysianist, a newsletter on money and power. Fuel up with a monthly, annual or founding member plan.
P.S. The founding member tier doesn’t have a ceiling; you can go as high as you want — it’s the ultimate supporter badge.
It’ll also grant you access to Brainjam with bangers such as this 👇🏽
And, yes, you can upgrade subscription tiers at any time.
Mulling a group purchase for family, friends and colleagues? I’ve got you. Group subscriptions come with discounts, too.
Yesterday, an Indonesian court sentenced eFishery founder Gibran Huzaifah to nine years in prison for embezzlement and money laundering tied to the firm’s US$300 million collapse.
As it should, some will say. But there is silence around everyone who put Gibran on a stage.
I’ll start with KWAP.