12-pt plunge crisis of competitiveness – 4-month conspiracy of silence and denial syndrome
When Malaysia’s world competitiveness ranking last year improved by five places and ranked 16th as compared to 21st position in 2003 in the Swiss-based International Institute of Management Development (IMD) World Competitiveness Yearbook 2004, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi immediately quoted it as authority in his keynote address at the Malaysia-China Business Dialogue in Beijing on 28th May 2004 during his first official visit to China as premier as testimonial why Malaysia was a good place to do business.
But when Malaysia’s world competitiveness ranking plunged 12 places from 16th to 28th position in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 in May this year , it was met with a conspiracy of silence and denial syndrome which was only broken by the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday – four long months later.
Najib said: “And what’s worse, in terms of government efficiency, we deteriorated from 16th place to a disappointing 26th place. This scenario does not speak very well of our achievements and progress in the last few years.” (Star 13.9.2005)
What Malaysians should be very worried is that the government has taken four long months to end its denial syndrome and the conspiracy silence to begin to worry about the 12-point plunge in our international competitiveness. This does not inspire confidence that the government has the wherewithal to bring to fruition the promise of a 15-year economic boom till 2020 which the Prime Minister promised top fund managers in London, the first stop of his Malaysia Global Roadshow, yesterday.
Instead of highlighting the 12-point plunge in world competitiveness, the national news agency Bernama gave a spin to the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 when it was released in May, and the Bernama report on the “good news” that the Malaysian “domestic economic performance” had improved from 8th position from 16th the previous year was carried by the mainstream media .
Virtually ignored was the 12-point plunge in the world competitiveness and the even more alarming finding by IMD that for the first time, Malaysia lost out in the international competitiveness stakes to Thailand, which was ranked No. 27 before Malaysia.
The following comparative IMD rankings of Malaysia with Thailand and other Asian economies in the past three years should have got the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister worried immediately in May and not only after four months after the release of the finding:
IMD World Competiveness Ranking
Year Malaysia Thailand Singapore Hong Kong Taiwan Japan
2003 21 30 4 10 17 25
2004 16 29 2 6 12 23
2005 28 27 3 2 11 21
In May, I had asked two questions:
The mainstream mass media and the government should have sounded the alarm at the worsening competitiveness of Malaysia, as illustrated by the 12-point plunge in IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 and losing out for the first time to Thailand, which should be regarded as a national crisis requiring urgent action by the Cabinet – instead of trying to sweep the bad news under the carpet by focusing on the few criteria where the nation had better score than the previous year.
When Parliament met in June, I submitted a question asking for “the reasons why Malaysia has fallen 12 places from 16th to 28th ranking in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005, losing for the first time in international competitiveness to Thailand and the government’s response to this latest development”.
The written reply by the Minister for International Trade and Indusltry, Datuk Paduka Rafidah Aziz was so outrageous and unacceptable that I sought to move a motion of urgent, definite public importance in Parliament on 5th July 2005.
The motion read:
Most regrettably though not unexpectedly, the motion was rejected by the Speaker, Tan Sri Ramli Ngah on the most unconvincing of grounds.
Now that Najib has belatedly, four months later, admitted the seriousness of Malaysia’s crisis of competitiveness, falling not only 12 places from 16th to 28th ranking in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005, but also losing to Thailand for the first time in the nation’s history, will a new strategy to restore Malaysia’s world competitiveness be the centrepiece of the 2006 Budget which will be tabled in Parliament on Sept. 30?
But when Malaysia’s world competitiveness ranking plunged 12 places from 16th to 28th position in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 in May this year , it was met with a conspiracy of silence and denial syndrome which was only broken by the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday – four long months later.
Speaking at the 10th Civil Service Conference on “Development with a Human Touch: Maximising Human Capital” in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, Najib said the IMD ranking on the 12-point plunge in the nation’s world competitiveness has “got the government worried”.
Najib said: “And what’s worse, in terms of government efficiency, we deteriorated from 16th place to a disappointing 26th place. This scenario does not speak very well of our achievements and progress in the last few years.” (Star 13.9.2005)
What Malaysians should be very worried is that the government has taken four long months to end its denial syndrome and the conspiracy silence to begin to worry about the 12-point plunge in our international competitiveness. This does not inspire confidence that the government has the wherewithal to bring to fruition the promise of a 15-year economic boom till 2020 which the Prime Minister promised top fund managers in London, the first stop of his Malaysia Global Roadshow, yesterday.
Instead of highlighting the 12-point plunge in world competitiveness, the national news agency Bernama gave a spin to the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 when it was released in May, and the Bernama report on the “good news” that the Malaysian “domestic economic performance” had improved from 8th position from 16th the previous year was carried by the mainstream media .
Virtually ignored was the 12-point plunge in the world competitiveness and the even more alarming finding by IMD that for the first time, Malaysia lost out in the international competitiveness stakes to Thailand, which was ranked No. 27 before Malaysia.
The following comparative IMD rankings of Malaysia with Thailand and other Asian economies in the past three years should have got the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister worried immediately in May and not only after four months after the release of the finding:
IMD World Competiveness Ranking
Year Malaysia Thailand Singapore Hong Kong Taiwan Japan
2003 21 30 4 10 17 25
2004 16 29 2 6 12 23
2005 28 27 3 2 11 21
In May, I had asked two questions:
- Why is Malaysia losing out in international competitiveness to the extent of a 12-point plunge in the IMD World Competitiveness Ranking when the Prime Minister had repeatedly said that his top priority is excellence and the enhancement of the nation’s competitiveness to rebrand Malaysia in the global marketplace?
- Why is Bernama, as the national news agency, being less than honest and responsible in trying to purvey the “false news” by focusing attention on Malaysia moving from 16th to 8th position in domestic economic performance, when this is only one of 312 criteria for the international competitiveness ranking which has seen a 12-point plunge for Malaysia?
The mainstream mass media and the government should have sounded the alarm at the worsening competitiveness of Malaysia, as illustrated by the 12-point plunge in IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 and losing out for the first time to Thailand, which should be regarded as a national crisis requiring urgent action by the Cabinet – instead of trying to sweep the bad news under the carpet by focusing on the few criteria where the nation had better score than the previous year.
When Parliament met in June, I submitted a question asking for “the reasons why Malaysia has fallen 12 places from 16th to 28th ranking in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005, losing for the first time in international competitiveness to Thailand and the government’s response to this latest development”.
The written reply by the Minister for International Trade and Indusltry, Datuk Paduka Rafidah Aziz was so outrageous and unacceptable that I sought to move a motion of urgent, definite public importance in Parliament on 5th July 2005.
The motion read:
“That under Standing Order 18 the House gives leave to the Ketua Pembangkang and MP for Ipoh Timor YB Lim Kit Siang to move a motion of urgent definite public importance, viz Malaysia’s crisis of competitiveness, falling 12 places from 16th to 28th ranking in the IMD World Competiveness Yearbook 2005 and losing for the first time in international competitiveness to Thailand.
“The Minister for International Trade and Industry in her written reply to my question this week highlighted the denial syndrome afflicting her Ministry when she tried to gloss over the gravity of the nation’s crisis of competitiveness by giving weak and indefensible arguments challenging the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 and claiming that Malaysia’s competitiveness was still strong when “looked at in a specific and broader context, and not only focused on one indicator”.
“In refusing to acknowledge Malaysia’s deteriorating international competitiveness, the Minister for International Trade and Industry was doing her Ministry and the nation a grave disservice, as Malaysia will not regain her competitiveness and fulfill the Prime Minister’s goal of giving top priority to excellence and the enhancement of the nation’s competitiveness to rebrand Malaysia in the global marketplace if the government continues to be blinded by a denial syndrome and refusal to own up on Malaysia’s crisis of competitiveness.
“Parliament must debate Malaysia’s crisis of competitiveness to place it as the priority agenda of the government, particularly the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, if Malaysia is not to lose out in the race for a proper stake in the global marketplace; or
Fail in the Prime Minister’s campaign to rebrand Malaysia internationally as a corporate nation with integrity, quality, security, service and efficiency.”
Most regrettably though not unexpectedly, the motion was rejected by the Speaker, Tan Sri Ramli Ngah on the most unconvincing of grounds.
Now that Najib has belatedly, four months later, admitted the seriousness of Malaysia’s crisis of competitiveness, falling not only 12 places from 16th to 28th ranking in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005, but also losing to Thailand for the first time in the nation’s history, will a new strategy to restore Malaysia’s world competitiveness be the centrepiece of the 2006 Budget which will be tabled in Parliament on Sept. 30?
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