Source: The Star, 19-08-2015

Cuepacs: exempt kids, disabled, old folk and the poor from GST

 

PETALING JAYA: Certain groups of Malaysians should be exempted from paying Goods and Services Tax because it is a huge burden on them, said Cuepacs.

Its president Datuk Azih Muda said four groups – children, the disabled, old folks and the poor – should not have to pay the tax.

“Children, before they can even talk, have to pay GST for their milk.

“When a poor person goes to buy milk, they go back home empty-handed because they don’t have the extra money to pay GST,” he told a press conference at the union’s headquarters here yesterday.

He added that the Government could decide on how best to implement the exemption if the suggestion was accepted.

“From what I hear, the Government has collected more revenue from GST compared to SST (sales and service tax), which was implemented previously.

“The Government should exempt these four groups of people from paying GST,” he added.

Aziz also urged the Government to look into the issue of certain housing developers allegedly cheating civil servants into buying property but leaving the projects uncompleted.

He said Cuepacs had received more than 1,000 complaints from civil servants so far, some of whom later found out that the developers were unlicensed.

He said only two developers had been charged over such cases and they were fined between RM40mil and RM50mil each.

Aziz said he knew of about 20 housing projects, including some in Kelantan, Terengganu, Selangor and Sarawak, which were left uncompleted, leaving the buyers in a lurch.