He said this after discovering that residential consumers were charged a higher tariff on the maximum scale of electricity consumption compared with these manufacturers.

“Domestic tariff can reach up to 57.10 sen/kWh, while tariffs for factories range from 20.20 sen/kWh to 44.10 sen/kWh,” Najib said in a Facebook post.

He said this meant that the government is giving out more subsidies to exporters, including those that are foreign-owned.

“Indirectly, foreign consumers of these exported goods are benefitting from subsidies provided by the Malaysian government.

“That is why I suggest that a more appropriate electricity surcharge be imposed on these exporters.”

This surcharge method, according to Najib, is fair to these manufacturers since power rates are much higher in other countries, adding that this would not affect Malaysia’s ability to lure foreign investment.

The Pekan MP also said it was “nonsensical” that Malaysian households have to pay much higher tariffs compared with foreign-owned exporters, and added that the revenue from the surcharge can be spent to cover the subsidy spent by Putrajaya, or channelled to the rakyat in the form of aid.

Najib said if the surcharge is imposed, exporters can apply for exemption on condition that they supply at least 30% of their manufactured products to the domestic market.

“This would ensure that the demands of the domestic market are fulfilled, thus avoiding supply shortage problems,” added Najib.