Economy tanked because of Umno-led BN & its cronies. Not Anwar alone!

Anwar tanked economy in bid to oust Dr M, says Najib

By Yow Hong Chieh

June 10, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, June 10 — Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim deliberately mismanaged the economy as finance minister during the Asian financial crisis in 1997 and 1998 in order to hasten Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s exit, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today.

The prime minister told residents at a Selangor suburb that Anwar, who was also the then deputy prime minister, raised interest rates and cut public allocations in an attempt to force then-prime minister Dr Mahathir out of government and take his place.

“I was in Cabinet, I know the story,” Najib (picture) told Lembah AU5D residents here during a walkabout today.

“He raised interest rates by 20 per cent and cut (public) allocations to ruin the economy all because he wanted to be prime minister, because he wanted to push Dr Mahathir out,” he added.

Anwar’s PKR party and two allies, DAP and PAS, won Selangor from the Barisan Nasional (BN) in Election 2008 but Najib, who is Umno president and heads the party’s Selangor chapter, is working the ground to win the country’s wealthiest state in the next general elections.

Taking another dig at Anwar’s time in government, Najib pointed out it was useless to talk big but not live up to one’s promises when in power.

He added that Anwar’s alleged failure to manage the economy then meant that voters now should not trust claims by Pakatan Rakyat (PR) that it can keep the price of fuel low if it wins federal power.

The billions of ringgit needed to maintain fuel subsidies in the face of rising global crude oil prices would have to come from allocations meant for public goods, he said.

“With the price of oil going up, if you put PR in power that will happen.”

“Economic experts won’t do that. They won’t use funds for schools, roads and mosques for fuel,” said Najib, who is also Finance Minister.

There is no perfect economic system in this world. Look at America. Capitalism brought riches to America but today, America is the country with the most external debt.

One of the major cause of any economic failures is the greed of those in the corridors of power!