Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said his ministry’s officers had been actively monitoring the prices of goods and addressing complaints by consumers since the GST was zero-rated on June 1.
“We find there has been an increase in complaints, over three-fold, and more than half were about prices of goods not being reduced at food outlets and cafeterias.
“Najib need not spin the issue. It is all about business ethics,” he said at a press conference during a Hari Raya open house here.
Saifuddin said the ministry took the matter of business ethics very seriously and would step up price monitoring measures.
“The monitoring will end with goods being seized, compounds being issued and the operators being brought to court for violations of the law. That is already happening,” he said.
Yesterday, Najib claimed Saifuddin was making a U-turn by acknowledging that the GST was not the primary reason for the increase in prices of consumer goods.
The consumption tax was introduced by Najib in April 2015, and critics blamed it for causing inflation and rising prices.
However, Najib said the prices of goods did not appear to have gone down after the GST was zero-rated.
Abolishing the GST was a key plank in the Pakatan Harapan (PH) manifesto ahead of the May 9 polls.
The PH government plans to re-introduce the sales and services tax (SST) to replace the GST.
Saifuddin said Najib had caused major damage to the country during his term as prime minister, and the measures to fix the problems would take time.
He also reminded Najib that there were many other issues that led to a rise in the cost of living, not just the cost of food and beverages.
He said the cost of housing, health, education, transport and utilities also contributed to the rise in the cost of living.
“At least six aspects have contributed to an increase in the cost of living. Let us accept the fact.
“He must see that his policies have led to a rise in the cost of living. He cannot just pick one side,” he said.
Saifuddin also urged Najib to be present and actively involved in Parliament.
“He must be present for all the sessions. He cannot play truant like before. He can ask us anything,” he said.