Recently, Malaysia seems to be increasingly isolated in the regional and international arena which is not in the best interest of the nation in a era of globalisation.
After the meeting with the Singapore Prime Minister yesterday, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad said Singapore could be of help to Malaysia especially to overcome the present economic crisis as raising funds in Singapore for Malaysia’s financial needs.
Although no time frame or figure has been given about the funds Malaysia expects to raise in Singapore, this is a welcome recognition that Malaysia needs international investment and confidence to help the country pull out of the economic crisis, as Malaysian leaders had recently given the impression that the country does not need international funding and could completely depend on local sources of funding for the RM60 billion needed to recapitalise the banking system, tackle bad debts and reflate the economy through deficit spending.
Although the Malaysian government had appointed the American securities and brokerage firm, Salomon Smith Barney Holdings Inc. to raise foreign funds to meet the nation’s needs, the project does not seem to have met with much success and the government should present in Parliament a progress report of Salomon Smith Barney Holdings Inc.’s fund-raising efforts to date.
(6/11/98)