Speaking at the Association of Malaysian Economics Undergraduates Economic Summit 2021, Ong said the government should consider opening more sectors in a strategic and responsible manner.
Using tourism as an example, the Bangi MP said the government could allow people in Malaysia to exit the country without having to apply with the immigration department, even if it was to go on holiday.
He said people could be limited to traveling to certain countries deemed safer pandemic-wise as well as restricting this to only fully vaccinated individuals.
“Then, when they come back, they can undergo the proper quarantine protocol. This would help the airline industry.
“We can also open the borders up to tourists who are fully vaccinated from countries like Singapore or New Zealand, even if it’s not reciprocal.
“This would enable our tourism industry to bounce back faster than our neighbouring countries,” he said in a panel discussion that also featured prominent economist Jomo Kwame Sundaram and Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs CEO Tricia Yeoh.
He added that a strategic reopening of sectors was also key for micro small- and medium-sized enterprises (micro SMEs) to give them some breathing space.
Commenting on Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s Cabinet line-up, Ong said it does not inspire much confidence in terms of foreign direct investments (FDIs) since key positions were held by the same people.
He particularly named international trade and industry minister Azmin Ali and transport minister Wee Ka Siong, where the latter had been under fire over the cabotage exemption issue.
Jomo had a different take on the issue of FDI, saying that the government should not be fixated on it at this point in time.
“Putrajaya should instead focus on spurring domestic direct investments (DDIs) as the former would usually follow the latter,” he said.
He pointed to how East Asian Countries such as Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and even China have grown exponentially without relying on FDIs.
“If foreign investors look at how domestic investment is faring and they don’t feel confident, they won’t rush in.
“We’ve been stuck in a time warp doing things for the same reason for decades without adjusting our policies in an agile way to ensure FDI is complementary to DDI,” he said.