If You Are Fundamentally Screwed Blame It On Mahathir

Hantu Laut

I am beginning to think Malaysians are not very smart lot, the very reason we are left behind countries like Singapore,Hong Kong,Taiwan and South Korea.

Malaysians are just too smart for their own good.

The government have provided more than basic infrastructures and opportunities for the people to grow with the time. 

As former Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi said "We have first world infrastructures but third world mentality" We are left behind the real tiger economies because of us, not because of the government.Government can only do so much. 

The greatness of a nation much depend on its citizens, the attitude and aptitude of the people.

Unfortunately, Malaysians are too slow or too lazy to change. 

They want the luxury and comfort of the Western's world standard of living but do not want to put in the effort and hard work, unlike the Taiwanese, South Koreans, Hongkees and Singaporeans, some working as long as 12 hours a day.

Today, these tiger economies of Asia are rewarded with higher wages and better standard of living. 

Malaysians, have become accustomed to the dependent mentality, the "teenage syndrome". Years of government subsidies have spoiled them as they yearn for more and more subsidy. It has the cheapest petrol price in the region yet they still complained to no end. 

Anwar Ibrahim has promised to reduce the price of petrol if Pakatan win the next general elections. Hanging the carrot, stupid Malaysians believe him. 

Pakatan have promised to reduce the prices of almost every conceivable consumables, it makes one wonder from where are they going to get the money. Unless, they increase the debt ceiling there is no way they can finance all that they have promised. Malaysia have set its debt ceiling at 55% of GDP and the present debt to GDP ratio is hovering around 52/53%.

If contradiction is the buzz word, it's surely in Pakatan, they have also promised to reduce the budget deficit. 

Malaysians have the habit of blaming their government for their failures and shortcomings.If they are civil servant stagnated in their positions they will blame the government instead of their own incompetence. 

It has become pivotal point to blame Mahathir for everything that have gone wrong with this country, but this beautiful country is far from being a beggar's state, we have yet to slide into the gutter. 

When it come to investing, the average Malaysians are just as clueless, either of poor judgment or insatiable greed.

Many of you  must have read the recent  debacle of some gold trading houses that have been caught operating without licences by Bank Negara. Some members of the opposition and the inimitibly stupid investors blamed Mahathir  for asking them to invest in gold ... accused Mahathir of saying it is better to invest in gold than keeping your money in the bank.

We all know Mahathir had never been an investment guru and would never be one, if stupid is as stupid can be, these investors should have known better,  politicising the issue will not bring their money back.

Some of the investors have set up Facebook account supporting the companies and demanding Bank Negara to stop its action against the companies.One such company called Genneva  has a Facebook set up by its subscribers and have the bloody cheek to blame Bank Negara for their dilemma out of their own stupidity. The Facebook here.

Every sensible investor should know the first mandatory requirement before you part with your money, if the companies are not accredited banks or investment institutions approved by Bank Negara, is to check on the background of the company.

What brings these people to such investment companies? It is greed,  because such companies offer high return that can tempt even those with a sliver of greed and most Ponzi schemes offer nonsensical guaranteed return that anyone who knows about money matters wouldn't touch them with a ten-foot pole. Any company that promised to pay monthly or quarterly dividends should be high on the suspect list of Ponzi scheme.

You can buy paper gold through most banks in Malaysia, why don't these people buy from these accredited banks? Simply because such banks don't guarantee return on your investment, be it gold, unit trusts or any other investment. The only guaranted return a bank can give you is time (fixed) deposit,  which currently pays miserable rate, hence, the attraction to Ponzi schemes.

Malaysians never seemed to learn their lessons from the past. There have been many cases of Ponzi schemes in the past that have defrauded investors of million of ringgits yet thousands still flocked to such schemes without second thought. 

The Swisscash Investment programme, an Internet based scam was one such bogus investment house that defrauded Malaysians of millions of ringgit. The investors learned a bitter lesson with this too-good-to-be-true scheme that promised 300 % return in 15 months. With SC and Bank Negara intervention investors managed to get back 20 cents to the ringgit of their money, which, otherwise, would have been naught.

These greedy Malaysians who think they have the midas touch again blamed the government for their bad judgement and rapacious desire to get rich quickly in a get-rich-quick schemes.

Phnom Penh