2% wealth tax would raise more than expanded SST, says ex-MP

Free Malaysia Today

a day ago

Former Klang MP Charles Santiago argued that it is wrong to keep taxing consumption and not wealth, saying median wages barely keep up with inflation.
PETALING JAYA : A 2% wealth tax would raise around 60% more than the RM5 billion in revenue the government hopes to obtain from its expansion of the sales and service tax (SST), says former Klang MP Charles Santiago.
In a series of posts on X today, he commented on the assertion by deputy domestic trade and cost of living minister Fuziah Salleh that the government would become 'very unpopular' if it raised taxes on the top 10% of the nation's richest people and redistributed the wealth to the rest of the population.
'Malaysia's richest 50 hold US$90 billion (RM380.3 billion) in wealth, as per @Forbes. Why tax bananas and oil before mega mansions?' he said.
Speaking at the BBC World Questions debate on Tuesday, Fuziah said that while the distribution of wealth should be more equitable and efficient, the government had to tread carefully in doing so.
'We already hear some noises when we talk about targeted petrol subsidies that may exclude the T20.
'Even the 2% dividend (tax) met some resistance,' Malay Mail reported her as saying, in reference to the introduction of a dividend tax on annual dividend incomes exceeding RM100,000 under the 2025 budget.
Last year, finance minister II Amir Hamzah Azizan said the expansion of the SST was expected to generate RM51.7 billion in revenue in 2025, an additional revenue of RM5 billion over the previous SST collection forecast of RM46.7 billion.
However, Santiago insisted that the matter ultimately boiled down to perspective and priorities.
'If you own RM100 million, a 2% wealth tax is RM2 million. That's one less Ferrari. Or less than your annual interest. But RM2 million could fund 500,000 school meals. This is about priorities,' he said.
He also argued that it was wrong to keep taxing consumption and not wealth, saying median wages 'barely keep up with inflation'.
'@UnicefMY shows low-income families spend 38% of their income on food. Inequality doesn't just grow, it erodes nations. Time to rebalance,' he said.
He suggested that the increased revenue could be used, for example, to install solar panels for low-cost housing.
'This cuts electricity bills, creates income, and feeds clean energy into the grid,' he said.