EXTRA FISCAL INJECTION NEEDED TO ASSIST FLOOD VICTIMS - ANALYST

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 4  -- In order to assist flood victims, especially the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), Malaysia needs an extra fiscal injection as a necessary investment for the future of the people and the nation, an analyst said. 

“But remember, do not consider this as an expenditure but as an investment,” said International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance economic analyst Assoc Prof Bahrom Abdul Hamid. 

He believed a comprehensive study on ways the government can go the extra mile to help micro and nano businesses is needed. He said the RM30 million allocation for Flood Recovery Loan through TEKUN Nasional would help to a certain extent.

On the approved RM33 million Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) micro loan, he said it was fine but the government should step in aggressively to assist the people to find a place to stay first. He said the fundamental focus when recovering from a natural disaster is the design and preparation of places to stay and then micro financing can come in later. 

“The government must set up temporary or permanent relocations first because the affected do not have any means of economic resources to even continue living,” he said on Bernama TV's The Brief programme today.

Assistance, he said, should start with basic necessities such as houses, infrastructures such as roads and cash injection, before the provision of financing assistance. 

Yesterday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said a total of RM33 million out of RM93 million BSN micro loan applications for households were approved until Jan 1, 2022. The micro loan assistance was launched on Dec 27, 2021 for post-flood economic recovery.

Bahrom also hoped that the people will pull together to help each other to recover from the pandemic and also the floods, which had hit the heartbeat of economic activities in Malaysia, namely Selangor and the Klang Valley. 

-- BERNAMA