NAJIB U THE MAN

I think I am finally understanding the man. When Najib Tun Razak took over for Tun Abdullah Badawi as Malaysia's sixth Prime Minister, many including yours truly did not have much hope of him doing a better job than his immediate predecessor. During Abdullah's tenure, BN showed a poor performance - losing the two-third majority in Parliament and lost the States of Selangor, Perak, Penang and Kedah to Pakatan Rakyat. The growing support for the opposition in 2008 was seen as the start of BN downfall. The voters gave up on Pak Lah who came under barrage of fires not just from the Opposition but even BN leaders led by none other then his predecessor Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Najib inherited a troubled government, infested with corruption, weak leadership and a weakening economy. The Chinese voters practically threw their support to the Opposition and has remained steadfast with DAP and other opposition parties when they saw BN was weakening. Najib knew all this. He also knew that the good old days style of running the Government like under the then Prime Minister Dr Mahathir was over. The voters are now more sophisticated and unafraid. They know that racial riot like the May 1969 will not reoccur. People have grown wiser and more tolerant. Even the Malays admit that some of the privileges they enjoyed have to be shared by other races too. Hence, it came as no surprise when Najib started to make popular announcements, pleasing most quarters. Nevertheless, the hawkish members of UMNO are not happy. They prefer the status quo to remain. Quietly, they embarked on whispering campaigns to pressure Najib to stop making further changes that they perceived could erode their influence in the party and among the voters. So far, Najib has withstood the pressure and continued to make the changes necessary to ensure that BN remain relevant and can win the next general election. It is no easy task for the man. But, he must continue to make the changes. Also, he has to spread his influence further among party members who can determine that he continue to lead UMNO as its president. Although some UMNO leaders can be stubborn and unreasonable, most of the party members are rationale and will support him. He must continue to make tough decision, including removing cabinet members that have become liability to his leadership. He may lose some support, but he would gain a lot of support among voters.

Anything Goes As Long As You Can Score Brownie Points

While I support the need for a strong opposition in our august Parliament, I fail to appreciate the role it is currently playing. Hardly a day goes by where the Opposition leaders don't comment on everything the Government has done. All are wrong. Their supporters are no different, many just make nasty remarks. Sometimes it is so sickening.
Everything they did are right and what the Government did are wrong. Even if what the Government did helped the people, it is wrong. They have become so bold that they do not give a hoot towards the feeling of the ordinary people.
Why can't we focus on improving our lives, grow the economy and develop the nation. When it is time for the general election, then go to the people and seek the mandate to rule. But, once the voters have make the decision, please respect it. Do not continue to play politics.
However, there are issues that involved public interest that must be raised by the opposition. But please use the right platform. Be factual and questioned hard in Parliament and the State Assemblies. You are welcome to expose the wrongdoings. Criticize when you must. The Rakyat will support.

The Walk To No Where

Finally, the much awaited walk took place. But, I would describe it as a A Walk To No Where. There were thousands who walked - Bersih's and Perkasa's supporters, UMNO Youth members, curious onlookers, hundreds of reporters and photographers and security forces. But it was certainly a walk to no where. There was no place for them to assemble. For those who were told to assemble at Stadium Merdeka, they knew that the Bersih organisers did not get any police permit nor approval from the Stadium Board. Hence, everyone walked without really knowing where to go. So the moved everywhere. They went to Bukit Bintang, Kampung Baru, Masjid Negara, Pasar Seni, Stadium Negara, Stadium Merdeka, Petaling Street, Sogo, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Jalan Tun Perak, Pudu Raya and God knows where.
They chanted Bersih, Reformasi, Hidup, BN Zalim etc etc. And the world watched. The Arabs in Middle East probably wondered what they hell was going on in Malaysia. The Chinese in China, the Indian in India were all watching too. All confused.
The leaders of Bersih and supporters, including politicians who supported the move assembled themselves in the most luxurious hotel in Kuala Lumpur - KL Hilton. Most have rooms and probably spend the night there too. Perhaps, it is the nearest hotel to Stadium Merdeka. Their supporters, on the other, can sleep anywhere - in mosques, inside the transports they came, relatives and friends homes. So much for the struggle for the people.
Most of the leaders got arrested, including Umno Youth leader Khairy, Pas President Hadi and Ambiga. Ambiga was later released and quickly claimed that Bersih has successfully reached its objective.
But, Bersih supporters who walked were all Malays. What happened to the Chinese and Indians who were most vocal in their support for the walk. They chickened out as usual.

BERSIH WALK TO PROCEED

Some friends asked me whether the Bersih Walk will proceed as planned. And what were my thoughts about it. I replied then I do not know. However, the question triggered my curiousity and I now append my thoughts here.

"Yes, the Walk will take place. Why? Why not! Ambiga and whoever are behind her, including those providing the financial support, need to prove to the public that Bersih believes in upholding a clean general election process. The walk or march must go ahead so that they can convince the public that the present general election process is tainted and only favours the ruling party.

Just picture this. Despite the tainted Election process they won 80 over Parliamentary seats and formed four new State Governments in the 2008 general election, now imagine the "clean" 13th General Election....Why, Putrajaya is surely theirs!

One wonders why Ambiga decides to head Bersih? The answer is obvious. Pakatan Rakyat has to place her as the leader of Bersih to give an image that the movement is not politically driven. This so-called March is certainly not for the benefits of Malaysians but for the foreign market. She is seen not a member of any political party but just an ordinary person who cares and that the July 9 March is by the people for the people.

However, Malaysians recognised Ambiga as a former Bar Council chairperson who had been portrayed as a champion of justice, but she had been highly critical of the Government and the judiciary over many legal and social issues.

My best bet is Ambiga has fallen in love with politics and habours to be a full-time poltician. I am inclined to believe that Ambiga will be a candidate in this coming general election. However, I am almost certain she would not be contesting via the Barisan Nasional ticket, because there is no place for her there. On the other hand, she can easily represent PKR or DAP. And if she wins, and PR wins the general election, Ambiga stands a good chance to be the Law Minister. The post would have gone to Zaid Ibrahim, but he quit PKR to form his own party and now is at war with PKR, DAP and BN.

Has she no fear of police action against the Marchers and herself if the March proceed? My gut feeling is she is well-prepared for it. If anything happens to her, injury or arrested, she will be seen as hero to her supporters and the Government would look really bad. She could use those moments when campaigning in the general election.

Will this strategy work for Pakatan Rakyat to win the election? Maybe.

The Government vs Pakatan Rakyat

Pakatan Rakyat is adopting the 2008 general election build-up strategy once more to win voters' support for the next coming General Election. Clever! The last GE saw them winning over 80 parliamentary seats and formed four State Governments and retaining Kelantan.
This time around they want to occupy Putrajaya. By their own calculation, Pakatan Rakyat sees itself winning the 14th GE with a simple majority. They see them capturing most of the urban seats,including Chinese majority areas, PAS and PKR retaining most of them, if not all it's current seats.
And to "seal the victory", every attempt must be done to discredit the present Government and its leaders in all aspects. It does not matter if their accusations were wrong, they quickly move on. To them, the public is equally fed-up with the current Government and not bothered with the facts. The public blind support, as seen in most comments on blogs and forums, drive PR leaders to continue raining allegations on the Government.
Hence, we see PR leaders alleging Prime Minister and wife visit to Astana in Krgystan (?) to attend their daughter's wedding on the pretext of an official visit when they knew fully well that a Malay girl's wedding must alway be held at her parents' turf. Despite repeated calls for PR to apologize, they remained deadly silence. Now, another PR leader leader questioned whether the cost of hosting the prime minister's daughter engagement last Friday was paid using taxpayers' money.
The continued bombardment of allegations against the Government is a continued attempt to proof how corrupt and inefficient the BN leaders were. On the other hand, the Government leaders reacted slowly to deny the allegations, most of time after the allegations have set in or overtaken by other events. By then, the replies failed to make any significant impact.
We have come across situation where the Government's PR drives failed miserably because of insufficient information. PR leaders and it's machineries were quick to drive doubts on their viabilities. The Government, despite having all the funds to come up with excellent PR
campaigns, does not seem to come up with the right strategies. Sadly, most of the time the task is left to Prime Minister to spearhead. Whether this is by design or not, Prime Minister must review this and find a more effective strategy. Pakatan Rakyat will also not be taking any nap.

Social Media Fast Becoming Revenue Generator

Some politicians are like a bunch of hyenas. They are quick to pounce on almost anything that can provide them political mileage. Now the attack is on Tourism Malaysia facebook. For reasons unknown (yet), someone mentioned that the the Tourism Ministry spent RM1.8 million to manage six facebooks' sites for Tourism Malaysia. Then all hell broke lose and hyena like politicians started to condemned the Ministry for coughing up so much funds to manage facebooks. Facebook is, to many just a communication tool, for individuals to express their own opinions or to report their activities for the day. Some uploaded candid pictures and video clips. Perhaps, many have not realise that Facebook can be a revenue generating venture. Hence, many entreprises, especially on-line have started to use social media, including Facebooks and Twitters for business purposes. Corporations and Governments engaged online specialists to carry out their campaigns via social media. And trust me, they don't come cheap. The fees can be exhorbitant to some if they are clueless as to how these campaigns are carried out via social media. A lot of time, manpower and creative ideas are applied to ensure these campaigns are launched successfully.

That's The Answer Guan Eng

After days of bombardment by politicians and public, the Independepent Power Producers finally came up with a clarification that they do not benefit from gas subsidy. The reply was printed in the Sun in the letter to the editor (June 8, 2011). Please read:

IPP DO NOT BENEFIT FROM GAS SUBSIDY

PENJANABEBAS, the association of Independent Power Producers, wishes to clarify recent reports relating to the prevailing misconception that the gas subidy contributes to the overall profitablity of independent power producers.
The associaton wishes to reiterate that it is factually incorrect to portray our members as beneficiaries of the gas subsidy or that any of our members in any way profit from any fuel used in the generation of electricity.
Under the Malaysian IPP model, most of the power purchase agreements (PPAs) between our members and Tenaga Nasional Berhad operate on a fully despatchable basis (all capacity must be made available to the national grid at any time except during planned scheduled maintenance).
Payments to IPPs consists of two core components - Capacity Payments (fixed payments as specified under the resepective PPAs to recover the costs of developing power generating facitlies and fixed overheads), and Energy Payments for fuels consumed in generation and variable operating rates (to cover maintenance costs incurred during generation).
All IPPs only commence generation of electricity, and thereby incur fuel costs or variable operating expenses upon instruction from the off-taker (TNB).
Once instructed to despatch electricity by the off-taker, fuel consumed in generation by IPPs are quantified and billed back to the off-taker at pre-determined rates set by the government - in respect of gas, or at a rate dictated by TNB for coal, based upon the quantum of electricity generated and at agreed upon efficiency rates. In the event IPPs are unable to meet despatch as per TNB's instruction, penalities will be imposed.
As such the cost of gas as a fuel to generate electricty is a component that the IPP industry does not derive any benefit from. Instead, savings in gas costs (difference between international gas prices and a fixed price set by the Government) are passed on directly to consumers through lower tariffs.
Since 1997, the government has elected to shield electricity consumers from the volatility in gas pricing by setting a fixed cost for gas to electricity generators. Prior to this, TNB had been able to adjust its prices to consumer in response to market pricing, which in essence what is meant by the term a "fuel cost-pass-through to consumers" - the use of which is an international norm.
Moreover, it is important to note that IPPs are in no way involved in decisions relating to electricity tariffs as were are mere conract generators to TNB, whereby our generation facilities are contractually made available to TNB. Imporantly, the terms and rates contained within PPAs remined unchanged regardless of changes to electricity tariffs.
The association and our members would like to highlight that there is a need for rational and objective discussion on the Malaysian energy generation sector, and this must be undertaken froma balanced perspective to allow the public to make informed judgements on issues baced by the sectorl. Such understanding is important for engagements aimedat the development of a long_term sustainable national energy policy.
Our members would like to reiterate our commitment to engagiing in dialogue or discussions with members of the media and other stakeholders, with the aim of achieving understanding, support and commitment to meeting the nation's future energy needs.

Mat Sabu, an asset to PAS?

Fiery Mat Sabu won Pas Deputy President Post today. This is a major upset for the three -term former deputy president Nasharuddin. The former deputy president did not expect to lose as party tradition had always returned the incumbent.

Mat Sabu's unexpected victory caught political analysts by surprised as they thought he would not had any chance to hold the second most powerful position in the party. He is no ulama and really just the party's gladiator to drive donation and woo voters at ceramahs.

This unprecedented development may also force the party to relook at the future plans cause for the first time, the have a senior leader with "tarnished" image. How Mat Sabu will be featured by the party will be interesting as they have to be on the look out at UMNO which will exploit the issue to the hilt.

CEO SALARIES

CEO’s Salaries
Company
CEO Name
Salary (RM)

Genting
Tan Sri Lim Kok Tay
RM7.2 million/ month*2007

CIMB
Datuk Nazir Razak
RM9.35 million / year
Public Bank
Teh Ah Lek
RM6.2 million/ year
Puncak Niaga

Astro
Ralph Marshall
RM3.4 million / year

Maybank (former)
Amirsham Abdul Aziz
RM2.7 million / year

Sime Darby (Former)
Ahamad Zubir Murshid
RM2 million / year
Bursa Malaysia

Yusli Mohamed (Former)
RM1.97 million / year

Bousted Holdiings
Lodin Wok Kamaruddin
RM1.85 million / year
IOI Corporation
Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng
RM41.1 million – RM41.15 million / year*2008

SP Setia
Tan Sri Liew Kee Sin
RM10.26 million / year

Public Bank
Tan Sri The Hong Piow
RM6.96 million / year

Bumiputra-Commerce Holdings Bhd
Datuk Seri Nazir Razak
RM5.13 million / year

Axiata
Dato’ Seri Jamaluddin Ibrahim
RM6.2 million / year
IGB
Executive Director
RM4 million / year

ICT
Executive Director
RM3.4 million / year

WCT
Executive Director
RM4.6 million / year

I decided to post the salaries of the top CEOs in this country, to see whether TNB CEO is exhoribitantly paid as claimed by many quarters. The conclusion is clear. Most CEOs are paid about the same amount, except for owners of companies where they are paid much much more.

Nevertheless, I personally feel that those who attempted to politicise the salary of TNB CEO to hit at the Government are immoral blokes. Why pick on Che Khalid's salary? His salary is nothing great if we look at the salaries of other CEOs. Dont be a bunch of hypocrites.

To the politicians of both divide. Argue and debate intellegently and dont hit below the belt. It is unbecoming of you all.

WHY THE IMPACT ON BUSINESS DUE TO TARIFF HIKE WILL BE MINIMAL

Since the last tariff hike in 2006, citizens and corporations have undertaken steps to conserve electricity through the use of energy-saving products. They know that the hike will not be the last.

The hike in rate has nothing to do with mismanagement by the Government of the country’s energy resources or Tenaga Malaysia Berhad’s craving to soar its profit margin sky high.

The fact is the price of fuel and gas went up. This is a global issue and no country in the world can do anything much to control it. We have to be realistic and not allow opposition politicians to spray their poisonous sermon to hoodwink the people into believing that the current Government is inefficient and heartless.

Even if the rule the country, they will do the same and if they tell otherwise, they are lying and we are fool to believe them.

Coming back to the energy saving by the people and corporations, it was quoted in the STAR that there have been a sharp increase in customer orders for energy efficiency solutions.

Energy efficiency solutions provider Focus Dynamics Technologies Bhd chief executive officer Kee Twuan Tee said since the last quarter of 2009 already saw a 20% increase in customer orders for energy efficiency solutions.

“Customers were mainly hotels and owners of commercial buildings.Our customers are starting to talk about increasing revenue not just from sales, but also from cost savings. For a typical commercial building, the electricity bill amounts to about RM500,000 to RM700,000. Seventy per cent of this goes to air-conditioning, while the remainder is for lighting and heating,” Kee said.

He said energy efficiency solution products could reduce electricity bills by some 20%, with the return on investments on the solution over three years.

Corporations have also undertaken energy saving measures as part of their strategy to reduce their dependence on electricity.

Reported in the Edge Daily, Top Glove Bhd said the overall impact o natural gas and electricity city price increase is less than 1% of its total manufacturing cost. In addition, the company had started using biomass since 2005 to avoid depending entirely on natural gas.

Malaysia Steel Works (KL) Bhd CEO was quoted as saying that the new tariff would increase its electricity cost by approximately 10.5%. However, the company believed it could partially reduce its electricity cost by making adjustments.

In short, a lot of companies have adopted energy efficiency solutions to counter the high electricity cost.

What if the Government disallow TNB from increasing the tariff. Malaysia Insider in its reported dated May 26 said:

The Najib administration’s decision to defer subsidy cuts could have far-reaching implications for Malaysia’s long-term productivity and competitiveness, economists said today.

RAM Holdings Bhd chief economist Dr Yeah Kim Leng said the money used to keep pump prices at current levels could have been put to “more productive use”, such as bolstering Malaysia’s technology and innovation base to make the country more competitive.

He said this was particularly true of investments in research and development, training and education, infrastructure as well as social welfare, which would have also boosted earnings for lower income groups.

“The opportunity cost can be high, especially if the next best use of the additional funds could have generated much higher multiplier effects,” he told The Malaysian Insider.

Yeah said the short-term benefits in price stability gained from delaying fuel price hikes may create a false sense of economic security, and stressed that fuel subsidy cuts would have helped reduce consumption and encourage energy conservation and efficiency.

He also pointed out that rising fuel consumption would make Malaysia more vulnerable to future energy shocks should the price of crude oil continue to climb, given that the country is set to become a net importer of oil within the next decade, he said.

“Biting the bullet earlier would mean less pain in the future... The (subsidy) cuts when our backs are to the wall will be very much sharper,” he said.

Yeah added that there was a risk that unpredictable subsidy cuts and greater government borrowings arising from the growing budget deficit would impede market confidence and derail the economy, which was still dependent on foreign investment.

Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd economist Wan Suhaimi Saidi similarly said that the government’s reluctance to slash fuel subsidies would only lead to a widening budget deficit that could eventually hurt Malaysia’s sovereign credit rating and the cost of future borrowings.

“I don’t think they’re going to achieve 5.4 (per cent budget deficit target). You have to be realistic. I’m not going to be surprised if it reaches six per cent,” he said.

He said he was unsure Malaysia, as a net oil-exporting nation, would be able to offset the rising cost of fuel subsidies despite additional revenue from higher crude oil prices.

“In spite of the fact that the government may earn some extra revenue, it may not be enough to stem the rising deficit,” he said.

“How much can the government stomach?”

Jupiter Securities research head Pong Teng Siew, who felt delaying fuel subsidy cuts was “not the right choice”, said it was critical that the government not reduce the quality of public services to pay for the higher than expected subsidy bill.

“We hope they won’t shift the allocation from essential services to non-essential ones,” he said.

“That will affect the basic social functions that the government provides for everyone in the country.”

He said it would be better if the government instead improved public sector efficiency through increased computerisation and by cutting bloated procurements rather than reducing the scope of education and medical services.

Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said yesterday the government will not cut subsidies for RON95 petrol, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for now as it was “concerned for the people’s welfare”.

But Deputy Finance Minister Donald Lim announced today that fuel subsidies would be put under review if global crude oil prices reach US$110 to US$120 (RM330 – RM360) per barrel due to ballooning petroleum subsidies, expected to more than double from the budgeted RM8 billion to RM18 billion this year.

Investment research firm AmResearch has estimated that Putrajaya is now subsidising at least 90 sen per litre of RON95 versus the intended 30 sen per litre after crude oil prices surged to US$99 per barrel from US$79 per barrel last year, matching the US$100 per barrel recorded in 2008.

Crude oil prices are expected to trend upwards, with JP Morgan recently revising its 2011 estimates for Brent Crude and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude to US$120 and US$109.50 respectively.

The government also announced today that the National Economic Council will decide tomorrow whether to revise the electricity tariff after being instructed by Cabinet to deliberate on the matter.”

But does this mean that prices of goods will not increase? No. The prices of goods will continue to increase whether on not the electricity tariff is increased or not. Even before the minimal increase, prices of consumer goods have gone up. Other factors, including raw materials, higher labour charges and others are contributing factor that pushed manufacturers to hike the prices. This, at the end of the day, is passed to the consumers.

Any economist worth his salt can tell you that the cost of living will go up as the economy progress.

Jawaban Kepada RBF Online

Mulai 1 Jun nanti tarif eletrik akan naik sebanyak 7.12 %. Kata menteri yang bakal kalah di parlimen Miri dalam PRU akan datang, kenaikan tersebut tidak akan menjejaskan kira-kira 75 peratus penduduk yang menggunakan kurang daripada 300 kw sebulan. Jumlah 300 kw itu untuk pengguna yang membayar bil eletrik RM 85.80 sebulan. Mereka berkata kenaikan 7.12 peratus itu disebabkan oleh peningkatan harga gas asli untuk sektor tenaga.

Jawaban:

Menjelang 1 Jun 2011, TNB menanggung kos gas asli pada kadar RM13.70/mmBTU*. Peningkatan sebanyak 28 peratus berbanding harga semasa iaitu RM10.70/mmBTU*, berdasarkan keputusan kerajaan untuk menyemak mekanisme harga gas asli yang mencerminkan harga pasaran. Penyemakan akan dibuat setiap enam bulan.

Disebabkan peningkatan gas asli, bil TNB juga akan meningkat kepada lebih kurang RM1.5 bilion setahun.

Harga arang batu, yang menyumbang kepada 48.3 peratus kos tenaga oleh TNB juga telah meningkat. Arang batu kini dijual pada US $120 per tan berbanding US $85 per tan pada 2009.

Pada masa yang sama, harga arang batu juga telah meningkat.

Tarif baru ini dirangka berdasarkan harga arang batu pada US$85/tan CIF pada semakan Mac 2009. Sejak dari itu, purata harga arang batu telah meningkat sehingga US$120/tan CIF baru-baru ini.

Semakan tarif ini juga dilaksanakan bagi menampung sebahagian daripada peningkatan kos pembekalan elektrik sejak 2006. Peningkatan jumlah modal, peralatan dan perbelanjaan bahan mentah serta pembangunan infrastruktur penyediaan elektrik telah mengakibatkan keadaan semakin meruncing.

Semakan kadar elektrik perlu bagi mencerminkan kos-kos yang semakin meningkat ini.

Namun begitu, semakan kadar baru ini disusun secara teliti agar tidak menjejaskan pengguna yang kurang mampu dan berpendapatan rendah. Majoriti rakyat Malaysia (75% daripada jumlah penduduk) tidak akan mengalami pertukaran kadar elektrik.

Itulah pemikiran kepala otak sial bos-bos TNB haram jadah. Mereka buat syarikat itu seperti tok nenek mereka yang punya . Sedangkan ianya sebuah GLC. Setahun mereka untung berbilion-bilion kerana syarikat itu menjalankan perniagaan secara monopoli. Tapi mereka tak boleh korban sedikit keuntungan mereka kepada orang ramai. Yang mereka tahu untung mereka tak boleh kurang. Itulah pasal saya namakan mereka sialan dan dajalan.

Walaupun dalam keadaan kenaikan kos gas asli, bulan Febuary lepas TNB masih lagi mencatat untung bersih sebanyak RM 1.34 bilion untuk tempoh 6 bulan pertama. Itu baru 6 bulan. Kalau setahun dah RM 2.68 bilion. Itu dalam keadaan kenaikan kos gas asli, mereka masih lagi dapat mencatat untung sebanyak itu. Sebelum kenaikan kos gas asli sudah pastilah mereka untung lebih daripada itu. Kalau syarikat mereka rugi atau untung tak cukup , kita tak kisah sangat. Untung berbilion-bilion tapi nak tekan pelanggan lagi. Sial !

Halo Che Khalib, duit itu bukan tok nyang hang yang punya. Tolong jangan buat macam harta sendiri. Apa salahnya jika duit berbilion-bilion itu digunakan untuk menampung kenaikan harga gas. Nak pendapatan lebih carilah perniagaan lain. Kau kena ingat TNB itu GLC, tolong rakyat bukannya nak kaut untung berbilion-bilion kemudian simpan seperti harta sendiri.

Setiap kali harga gula atau minyak naik kerajaan selalu pesan kepada para peniaga agar jangan menaikkan harga barangan. Tetapi apabila kos gas asli naik, kerajaan benarkan pula TNB naikkan harga eletrik. Siap menteri lagi yang umum. Dimanakah keadilan untuk peniaga-peniaga lain yang tak untung berbilion-bilion ?

Jawaban

Kali terakhir semakan tarif asas dibuat ialah pada Jun 2006. Sejak beberapa tahun kebelakangan ini, kos pembekalan elektrik telah mengalami peningkatan terutamanya disebabkan kos-kos yang di luar kawalan termasuklah kos modal, peralatan dan bahan, inflasi, kos pertukaran wang asing dan kos pembangunan infrastrukur pembekalan elektrik.

Pada ketika ini, pulangan (Return on Ratebase, RoRB) TNB adalah jauh lebih rendah daripada kos modalnya (Weighted Average Cost of Capital, WACC) dan dijangka akan terus merosot sekiranya tarif asas semasa dikekalkan. Semakan tarif asas diperlukan untuk memastikan supaya Industri Pembekalan Elektrik di Malaysia terus berdaya maju.

Pinjaman TNB pada masa kini adalah tinggi sekitar RM21.3 billion pada 2010. TNB juga memerlukan perbelanjaan modal sekitar RM4 billion hingga RM5 billion setahun untuk pembangunan infrastruktur pembekalan elektrik pada masa hadapan

Bila Tarif Letrik Naik....

Pada mulanya rasa nak marah. Asyik naik aja. Bila nak turun ni. Tetapi bila fikir lama-lama, sembang dengan kekawan, berubah pula perasaan. Mana taknya, aku kerja dengan syarikat pengeluar makanan. Tiap-tiap tahun, harga barangan yang dibuat oleh kilang aku naik. Kami terpaksa naikkan harga kerana harga bahan mentah terutama yang diimpot naik. Gaji kakitangan, termasuk gaji aku juga dinaikkan pihak syarikat pada kadar 12%.
Jadi, bila TNB naik tarif selepas harga gas dinaikkan oleh Petronas setelah Kerajaan tidak tambah subsidi, ramai yang marah. Rasa pulak macam hipokret. Kalau aku marah kat TNB, bererti aku kena marah juga syarikat aku sendiri yang naikkan harga barangan makanannya.
Pening, pening. Aku baca banyak blog yang kutuk TNB termasuk bossnya sekali. Sampai gajinya pun dibangkitkan. Ada yang suruh dia sumbang sebahagain besar pendapatannya kepada rakyat. Kalau demikian pandangan mereka, maka semua CEO dan mereka yang berpendapatan lumayan perlu sumbang sebahagian gaji mereka kepada golongan tersebut. Jangan hadkan kepada Che Khalid aja.
Yang lawaknya, ramai yang mau TNB "absorb" kos yang tinggi agar tidak beban rakyat. Kalau itulah pandangan mereka baik suruh TNB jadi sebuah badan kebajikan aja. Berniaga tanpa untung.
Bab untung ni, kita kena paham bebenar apa erti untung sebenarnya. Yang berbilion untung tidak semestinya dalam bentuk wang ringgit. Ianya termasuk harta dan lain-lain. Aku tau lah sikit-sikit perkara ni. Kalau nak penjelasan yang lebih, tanya kawan-kawan yang ada finance background.
Bila TNB kata 75 peratus isi rumah tidak akan terjejas ekoran daripada kenaikan tarif. Terkejut juga aku. Ramai tu. Betul ke? Aku pun cuak juga. Mana mungkin. Tapi bila teringat keadaan di kampung aku di Malim Nawar, memang lah benar. Mereka di kampung mana pakai aircon. Rumah kat sana, besar-besar (rumah kampung) lubang angin luas tak perlu aircon sangat. Berjuta rakyat negara ini dok di luar bandar, mereka tak pakai letrik macam golongan berada di kuala lumpur atau bandar-bandar besar.
Aku fikirlah, kalau mereka tu dan mampu pakai aircon, alat pemanas air untuk mandi, gosok baju hari-hari, tengok tv tak berhenti-henti, anak-anak main video game berjam-jam, lampu tampan dipasang lebih 12 jam sehari. Lantak ler kalau terpaksa kena bayar letrik lebih.
Tapi yang aku heran, ngapa Kerajaan yang dipersalahkan. Cuba cermin diri sebelum salahkan orang lain. Kita pakai kereta besar-besar, minyak nak murah. Kalau kerajaan naik harga Ron95, nak undi pembangkang. Apa pembangkang kasi harga barang turun ke? Setahu aku yang duduk di Selayang, cukai pintu dan bayaran-bayaran lain tak turun pun. Apalah kau orang ni. Manja sangat.