Time to Move on and Focus on the Economy

KUALA LUMPUR: Move on and focus on the economy, especially now with the current financial crisis in the US.

This was the pragmatic reaction of Gerakan secretary-general Datuk Seri Chia Kwang Chye on the Parti Keadilan de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s failure to take over the government yesterday.

“If Anwar has names to reveal, then he should just go ahead and do it. Put the issue to rest. We need to move on,” said Chia. Chia said that there has not been enough focus on the country’s economic development and progress since the March 8 general election.

This was worrying, he said.
Postponing the announcements will only add on to the political instability, which in turn is affecting the country’s foreign investments, he said. “We need to focus on our economy, especially with the current situation in the United States,” he said. told the New Straits Times.

Chia was referring to the global financial shakeup on Monday when two of the top five investment banks in the US became victims of the sub-prime mortgage crisis in the United States.

Financial institution Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection and its rival Merrill Lynch agreed to be taken over by the Bank of America. This brings the number of to three major investment banks in the US departing the financial scene within six months. Bear Sterns was acquired by JP Morgan in March.

International experts say that the fallout from the global financial crisis was far from over. Although Malaysia was unlikely to be directly affected by the collapse of the two American financial institutions, local financial experts say that the effect on the American economy will consequentially affect global growth.

Equities head of broking at JP Morgan Malaysia Clement Chew said that a slower US economy will hurt growth forecasts in Asia and Europe.

By : Nisha Sabanayagam
New Straits Times 17/09/2008