BN to lower property-related taxes when it retakes Selangor

KUALA LUMPUR: Barisan Nasional (BN) will lower property-related taxes in Selangor in an effort to reduce house prices, the cost of doing business as well as prices of goods and services in the state, when it retakes Selangor in the coming general election.
Special Officer to the Prime Minister, Isham Jalil said the cost of living in Selangor was one of the highest in the country and that this was a result of the state's policy of raising property taxes, which in turn, had increased the cost of doing business and the cost of living.
He said since the Pakatan government took over the state in 2008, it had increased the fees for 90 types of business licences in Selangor, with those under the Shah Alam City Council raised by as much as 72% and the Petaling Jaya City Council raising it by as much as 120%.
"As a case in point, a new licence fee for a used car dealership under Pakatan's Kajang Municipal Council was increased by 282% to RM1,490 from RM390 during Barisan Nasional's time," Isham said in an opinion piece in an English-language daily, published today.
He said Pakatan local governments had also charged fees on 32 types of business premises, which previously were exempted under the BN government, as well as increasing assessment rates on old folks' homes, homes for the disabled and nurseries.
In Penang, on the other hand, he said small and petty traders also felt the brunt of escalating costs due to increased business fees.
According to the BN's Pulau Betong state representative, Datuk Muhammad Farid Saad , contribution fees per stall at some places in Penang were increased from about RM3,000 (before 2008) to between RM35,000 and RM58,000 now.
"When a trader pays a high rental for his business premises, he will transfer the cost to the consumers in terms of higher prices of goods and services," he said.
Isham said the Goods and Services Tax (GST) implemented in 2015, was often spun by the opposition as the main factor causing the increase in the cost of living, but, a significant increase in the cost of living actually happened between 2008 and 2011 in Selangor and Penang.
He said the increase could not have been due to an increase in oil prices, because the petrol price at the pump was reduced six times within four months from August 2008 to 2009 and stable at below and about RM2 per litre for years afterward.
"It also could not be due to the cost of building materials since the price of construction materials has been stable from 2009 onwards.
"In fact, the steel price, one of the biggest components in construction, dropped to half the price at below RM2,000 per tonne in 2009 from around RM4,000 per tonne in 2008," he said.
Meanwhile, Isham said, the Selangor state government had in recent years increased the salary of the Mentri Besar and the Pakatan state executive committee members.
"The Mentri Besar's salary now is the highest among public servants in the country and higher than that of the Prime Minister. Effectively, Pakatan politicians have increased the tax burden on the people and raised their own salaries," he added. — Bernama