'I don't want our children to inherit the nation's debt'

New Straits Times

a day ago

MUAR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim warned that unchecked national debt could burden future generations, stressing his government's duty to rein in borrowing before it spirals further.
He said his persistent warnings about national debt were driven by a responsibility to prevent the burden from being inherited by future generations.
Malaysia's debt level remains high, and managing it responsibly is crucial to restoring investor confidence and safeguarding the country's economic future.
"People complain that I always talk about debt, but how can we not? If we don't pay, who will?
"Who's going to invest in a country that doesn't honour its debts? We must pay what we owe.
"In 2022, the government borrowed RM100 billion.
"The following year, we brought it down to RM90 billion. This year, it's RM80 billion.
"We are controlling it to prevent ballooning debt," he said in his speech at the National Month and Fly the Jalur Gemilang 2025 launch at Dataran Tanjung Emas here today.
Also present were Communications Minister and National Month Steering Committee chairman Datuk Fahmi Fadzil, and Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi.
Anwar said he would not resort to populist spending at the expense of the country's financial stability.
"I could easily spend more and look popular, but who will pay later? It will be our children.
"That's not leadership, that's irresponsibility."
He, however, said he had no objection to borrowing for meaningful development, especially for rural communities.
"When the late Tun Abdul Razak was prime minister, he took World Bank loans to build rural projects, that I can accept. Our fathers borrowed to uplift the people.
"But debt because of 'sakau' (embezzlement) – that is what we fight against.
"We must act against it because money taken from the people must be returned to the people," he said.