Interesting Perspectives on Fuel Price Hike

The latest post titled "OIL PRICE"

http://www.chedet.com/2008/06/oil-price.html

by former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has some interesting facts, but I advise my readers to go to chedet.com to read the whole article so you catch the right conext and nuances.

An extract follows:

"Can the Government subsidise? I am the “adviser” to Petronas but I know very little about it beyond what is published in its accounts. What I do know may not be very accurate but should be sufficient for me to draw certain conclusions.

Roughly Malaysia produces 650,000 barrels of crude per day. We consume 400,000 barrels leaving 250,000 barrels to be exported.

Three years ago the selling price of crude was about USD30 per barrel. Today it is USD130 – an increase of USD100. There is hardly any increase in the production cost so that the extra USD100 can be considered as pure profit.

Our 250,000 barrels of export should earn us 250,000 x 100 x 365 x 3 = RM27,375,000,000 (twenty seven billion Ringgit).

But Petronas made a profit of well over RM70 billion, all of which belong to the Government.

By all accounts the Government is flushed with money..."

And from another source, former Deputy Prime Minister DS Anwar Ibrahim -- who was sacked in 1998 by none other than Dr Mahathir! -- has another interesting perspective, which in summary means that YES, IF HE WERE TO HEAD A NEW FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HE COULD IMMEDIATELY LOWER THE PRICE OF PETROL!

He said this in a frontpage report in te latest issue of SUARA KEADILAN of which I have a copy; you can borrow it at RM1 an hour so that in such hard times following the fuel price hike, I could partially recover the newsletter cost of RM2 as well as the travel costs dring my little Viva Furong-KL-Seremban eating up some RM40 of my hard-earned moolah. This last word in the preceding sentence shouldnot be confused with mullah which can put my life in dager in such interesting times, but Minta Maaf, I digress!

I now Copy&Paste from the Malaysian Insider, to whom I offer Congratulations for breaking quite many refreshing, exclusive stories, professionally written too, the latest word from DSAI, the de facto PRK leader who's now termed THE PM-IN-WAITING. I offer to stand guard at the entrance, but they wanted my CV with GOoD referee, but all the good ones are at the EURO CUP or English League:) Sorry, digressing again -- but that's the beaut in Blogging, you can abuse this AP at wantonleisure! One prime reason you must get on baord the BBandwagon. For PR-ing this, All-Blogs prez rockybru owes Desi one rut bir.


Anwar: I will roll back fuel hike

http://malaysianinsider.com/mni/anwar-i-will-roll-back-fuel-hike.html

KUALA LUMPUR, June 8 — Adding fuel to public resentment over the latest round of petrol price hike, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today promised to bring down prices once the Pakatan Rakyat assume control of the central government.

How strong is this commitment? Well, the man dubbed Malaysia's prime minister-in-waiting said "I will resign immediately" if a Pakatan government is unable to roll back the subsidy cuts which have produced a steep 78 sen rise for unleaded petrol to RM2.78 a litre and diesel by RM1 to RM2.58 a litre.

Anwar, also regarded as the de facto Opposition leader, has capitalised on a Malaysian ground swell of displeasure, speaking out against the fuel hike in regional and international media. He returned today from Manila where he was lionised by Philippine TV broadcasters and newspapers.

In a press conference at Parti Keadilan Rakyat head office in Petaling Jaya, he announced new members – former Abim president Dr Mohd Noor Manuti and Felicia Lim, who had served in the MCA exco – for the party supreme council. PKR has also been strengthened by 50,000 new members.

Anwar stuck to his guns that there will be the required number of at least 30 MPs who will cross over giving Pakatan Rakyat a simple majority in Parliament to topple the ruling Barisan Nasional government soon. He also confidently re-stated that the defections will take place by Sept 16 or Malaysia Day.

For the moment, he explained that secrecy was necessary because the system is still "quite repressive" in the country and hence, divulging details of the MPs ready to switch camps might compromise their security. He said he has been meeting some of them outside the country.

The former deputy prime minister also said he can now openly participate in Malaysian politics – the registrar of society has given him a letter to that effect. This means Anwar's ban from politics expired on April 14 this year and he added that he doesn't require the attorney-general's approval to stand in a by-election.

**********************************

LATEST UPDATE @1.55pm, Monday quite bluesy still: from the Sun-ny paper,


WEB EDITION :: Local News

Anwar to contest in by-election soon
By Llew-Ann Phang

PETALING JAYA (June 8) : Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said June 8 he has received the green light from the Registrar of Societies (ROS) on his eligibility to contest an election, and will be doing so in a by-election soon.

Speaking to reporters after chairing the PKR supreme council meeting at the party’s new headquarters in Damansara yesterday, Anwar replied in the affirmative when being asked if he thought it was a good time for a by-election that he had earlier spoken about.

“Yes, yes. I got the letter from the ROS. And we have cleared the matter with our lawyers who have said we don’t need a letter from the Attorney-General’s Chambers. The letter from ROS is sufficient so we will use that,” he said.

When asked where he would contest, Anwar asked in jest: “Where do you want me to contest?”

Anwar who said he has been collecting feedback and a number of parliamentarians had volunteered to hand him their seat to contest, confirmed it will take place this year.

Anwar reiterated his claim that MPs from the Barisan Nasional (BN) were interested in switching parties.

“Firstly, we have to deliberate this at length with the PR leaders and secondly, you have to appreciate the fact that we have to do it very cautiously and being mindful of the fact that the system is quite repressive in this country. People wanting to talk to us have had to fly out very quietly to neighbouring capitals to convey us their message.”

He admitted meeting some BN MPs on his recent trip to Manila.

On the new subsidy plan which saw the price of petrol go up by 78 sen to RM2.70 per litre – “the highest single increase in the world” – he said it is a failure of managing the country’s economy, and kept to his promise of reducing the price should the PR government take over the administration.

Asked how they would do it, Anwar said the mechanism will be announced when the time is right.

Dismissing the act as one to gain popularity, Anwar argued that if the world market prices were soaring, Malaysia’s revenue was also multiplying by the billions.
He called for Petronas reports and accounts to be open for questioning, even at Parliament.“I’m a firm believer of market economy and I don’t believe that huge subsidies will be sustainable in the long term but I am also a humanist. I believe in humane economics. You must support the market economy but you must tamper with a strong genuine interest in the welfare of the people in the principle of social justice, otherwise an economy cannot be sustainable."

At the press conference, Anwar announced the elevation of eight people to the PKR supreme council -- Dr Mohd Noor Manuti, Nordin Mahmud, Nik Mahmood Nik Hassan, Syed Shahir Syed Mohamud, Dr Xavier Jayakumar, Hee Loy Sian, Datuk Yeop Adlan and Low Chee Chong.
He also welcomed four new members – former Malay Chamber of Commerce deputy president Datuk Dr Mohd Adam Harun, former Umno Mentakab deputy division chief Datuk Dr Mat Lazim Derani, former Wanita MCA Central Committee member Ling Lae Feei and TAFE College founder and Olympia College principal Dr M. Raken.


Updated: 08:16PM Sun, 08 Jun 2008

DESIDERATA: I hope te parts I had highlighted (thus BOLDED) would remind the ilks of bigmac and similar-minded BN-UMNO areslickers that these words of assurance that petrol prices at the pum couldin fact be lowered as testified by DSAI, who as a former Deputy PM and FINANCE MINISTER, is definitely in the know on the "numbers" game as far as Petronas' accounts are concerned.

I support DSAI's stand that the Government of the day must practise "Humane ecnomics", especially from the oil riches held by the largest economic entity that is PETRONAS, which actually is a national oil corpoartion held in trst for THE RAKYAT.

IF WE ARE A NET EXPORTER OF OIL, and OUR EXPORTED OIL IS OF A HIGHER GRADE and HENCE COMMANDS A PREMIUM PRICE OVER THE IMPORTED OIL'S PRICES,
MALAYSIANS SHOULD ENJOY LOWER FUELPRICES WHEN THE WORL OIL PRICE RISES.
The Government, and Petronas, have been taking us for a ride.
They are only teling us half the truth, harping on Subsidies all the time.
THEY DID NOT REFER TO THE HIGHER -- VERY MUCH HIGHER-- REVENUES ACCRUED TO PETRONAS EVERY TIME THE WORLD OIL PRICE GOES UP.

Where have all the Petronas billions gone
Gone to UMNOputra's pockets everyone
Where will they ever learn?
:
:
:
Mr Prime Minister -- and his Deputy Finance Minister (who LOST billions overseeing forex trading at BNM decades back, remember?)--
When will the Rakyat be told the whole Truth?