Yeah Kim Leng of Sunway University said the Cabinet, immediately after its swearing-in, needs to lay out improved measures to contain the pandemic.
He said these measures must assure people and give them the confidence to go out as this would increase consumer demand.
“The SOPs need to be strict, designed specifically for different sectors and monitored closely,” he told FMT.
“Without containing the pandemic, the economy cannot return to normal as people may not be confident to go out for fear of contracting the virus.”
Yeah said companies needed financial assistance to resuscitate their businesses, noting that the retail, hospitality and tourism sectors almost collapsed because of the prolonged lockdowns since last year.
“The emphasis should be on revitalising the economy by handing out capital, loans and other financing assistance,” he said.
He said the export sector was robust due to the recovering global economy, but the government should help these companies to expand so they could hire additional manpower after having to lay off many.
“They can absorb displaced workers from other sectors that are slower to recover,” he said.
Yeah also said a politically stable government was crucial to attract foreign direct investment as many investors left because of the uncertainties.
The new government should also approve mega projects to kickstart the economy and the supply chain, he said.
Kameel Mydin Meera, an adjunct economics and finance professor at International Islamic University Malaysia, said urgent monetary reforms were needed to help micro, small and medium-sized businesses.
Noting that most businesses were struggling because of the prolonged lockdowns, he said loans and financial aid should be immediately made available for them.
Barjoyai Bardai of Universiti Tun Abdul Razak agreed that the government needed to lift the lockdowns as they were damaging the economy.
He said there was a need to separate those who were infected, and cheaper testing kits, such as the breath analysers used in Singapore and Indonesia, should be approved.
Barjoyai said the lockdowns had not been effective and had caused “more harm than good” to the economy and the people’s mental health.
“They need to get the local economy going as foreign investors may not return immediately following over a year of political instability,” he said, adding that right policies and plans must first be in place.
He also said the poor and middle-income groups without jobs needed financial assistance, either through food stamps or cash handouts of RM1,500 a month for at least three months.
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