Mahathir vows to review China investments
He pledges more scrutiny of such ventures in Malaysia if he's PM
KUALA LUMPUR • China's investors in Malaysia will face more scrutiny if former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad wins back power in the upcoming elections.
Tun Dr Mahathir, the opposition's candidate for prime minister, said in an interview last Friday that Chinese investment was welcome if companies set up operations in Malaysia, employed locals and brought in capital and technology to the country. This was not the case now, he said.
"Here, we gain nothing from the investment," Dr Mahathir, 92, said in his office in Kuala Lumpur. "We don't welcome that."
Dr Mahathir's comments reflect broader concerns about Chinese investments across Asia that have stoked political tensions from Australia to Sri Lanka. While many countries are eager to benefit from President Xi Jinping's plan to facilitate hundreds of billions of dollars in infrastructure investment throughout the world, they are also wary of becoming too dependent on China.
In Malaysia, Chinese investment has raised concerns over sovereignty and economic inequality. Dr Mahathir referenced plans by Country Garden Holdings to invest US$100 billion (S$131 billion) in Johor to build apartments costing upwards of RM1 million (S$340,000). The median annual income in Malaysia was RM62,736 in 2016.
"We don't have enough people with wealth to buy all those very expensive flats, so you're bringing in foreigners," Dr Mahathir said. "No country wants to have an influx of huge numbers of foreign people into their country."
Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is seeking to extend his premiership to a third term in the general election, has dismissed the opposition's concerns about Chinese investment as "irresponsible politicians' scare-mongering". A spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comments.
MALAYSIANS FIRST
We are for Malaysians. We want to defend the rights of Malaysians. We don't want to sell chunks of this country to foreign companies which will develop whole towns.
DR MAHATHIR MOHAMAD
"Remember that Malaysian investment in China used to be bigger than Chinese investment in Malaysia, and that we have more Malaysian investments overseas than foreign direct investment (FDI) in this country," Datuk Seri Najib said at the Invest Malaysia 2018 conference in Kuala Lumpur in January. "So this is a two-way street. FDI levels vary over time, and such connections are part of, and key to, a healthy and diversified economy."
China is Malaysia's top source of FDI, contributing 7 per cent of the total RM54.7 billion it received last year.
Dr Mahathir cited Sri Lanka as a country that "lost a lot of land" because it could not pay back money from China. Last year, the Sri Lankan government gave a joint venture led by a Chinese state-run company a 99-year lease to the southern port of Hambantota in return for debt relief.
"Lots of people don't like Chinese investments," Dr Mahathir said. "We are for Malaysians. We want to defend the rights of Malaysians. We don't want to sell chunks of this country to foreign companies which will develop whole towns."
The Election Commission has yet to announce a date for the vote, which must be held in the next two months. Dr Mahathir has vowed to fight a ban on campaigning issued by the government after his party, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, failed to supply some information and documents.
The opposition coalition, Pakatan Harapan, pledged in its election manifesto to encourage continued investment from "China and other Asian countries". This would be done only after reviewing all foreign mega-projects to ensure there was no element of corruption, the manifesto said.
Projects include the East Coast Rail Link, with an estimated cost of RM55 billion, Dr Mahathir revealed in a forum last Thursday in Selangor. He said a Pakatan Harapan government would renegotiate the project, possibly seeking to reduce the 688km line unless there was enough demand. The project is slated for completion in 2024.
Malaysia's Mahathir Pledges to Review China Investment if Re-Elected
By and-
Chinese projects not benefiting Malaysia, Mahathir says
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Malaysians set to vote in national polls within two months
Chinese investors in Malaysia will face more scrutiny if former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad wins back power in the upcoming election.
Mahathir, the opposition’s candidate for prime minister, said in an interview Friday that Chinese investment was welcome if companies set up operations in Malaysia, employed locals, and brought in capital and technology to the country. This wasn’t the case now, he said.
"Here we gain nothing from the investment," Mahathir, 92, said in his office in Kuala Lumpur. "We don’t welcome that."
Mahathir’s comments reflect broader concerns about Chinese investment across Asia that have stoked political tensions from Australia to Sri Lanka. While many countries are eager to benefit from President Xi Jinping’s plan to facilitate hundreds of billions of dollars in infrastructure investment throughout the world, they are also wary of becoming too dependent on China.
In Malaysia, Chinese investment has raised concerns over sovereignty and economic inequality. Mahathir referenced plans by Country Garden Holdings Co. Ltd. to invest $100 billion in Johor state to build apartments that cost upwards of 1 million ringgit ($258,000). The median annual income in Malaysia was 62,736 ringgit in 2016.
Read more: Your Guide to Malaysia’s Upcoming General Election
"We don’t have enough people with wealth to buy all those very expensive flats, so you’re bringing in foreigners,” Mahathir said. “No country wants to have an influx of huge numbers of foreign people into their country."
Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is seeking to extend his premiership for a third term in the general election, has dismissed the opposition’s concerns on Chinese investment as "irresponsible politicians scare-mongering." A spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comments.
"Remember that Malaysian investment into China used to be bigger than Chinese investment in Malaysia, and that we have more Malaysian investments overseas than foreign direct investments in this country," Najib said at the Invest Malaysia 2018 conference in Kuala Lumpur in January. "So this is a two-way street. FDI levels vary over time, and such connections are part of, and key to, a healthy and diversified economy."
China is Malaysia’s top source of foreign direct investment, contributing 7 percent of the total 54.7 billion ringgit it received last year.
Read more: Chinese-Made $100 Billion City Near Singapore ‘Scares Everybody’
In the interview, Mahathir cited Sri Lanka as a country that “lost a lot of land” because it couldn’t pay back money from China. Last year, Sri Lanka’s government gave a joint venture led by a Chinese state-run company a 99-year lease to the southern port of Hambantota in return for debt relief.
“Lots of people don’t like Chinese investments,” Mahathir said. “We are for Malaysians. We want to defend the rights of Malaysians. We don’t want to sell chunks of this country to foreign companies who will develop whole towns.”
Hong Leong Bank Bhd and CGS-CIMB analysts expect Barisan Nasional to win the election, with the latter stating that the ruling coalition’s victory will be neutral-to-positive for the market, they wrote in separate research notes Monday. Hong Leong sees Pakatan Harapan’s manifesto increasing the country’s 2018 budget deficit to 4 percent of GDP, from 2.8 percent, on account of the opposition pact’s heavy emphasis on easing living costs.
The Election Commission has yet to announce a date for the vote, which must be held in the next two months. Mahathir has vowed to fight a ban on campaigning issued by the government after his party failed to meet a deadline to supply some information and documents.
Pakatan Harapan, or Pact of Hope, pledged in its election manifesto to encourage continued investment from "China and other Asian countries." This would be done only after reviewing all foreign mega-projects to ensure there was no element of corruption, the manifesto said.
Read more: Najib Doubles Down on Longtime Voter Bases in Poll Manifesto
Projects include the East Coast Rail Link, with an estimated cost of 55 billion ringgit, Mahathir revealed in a forum Thursday in Selangor. He said the Pakatan Harapan government would renegotiate the project, possibly seeking to reduce the 688-kilometer (428-mile) line unless there was enough demand. The project is slated for completion in 2024.
Mahathir said if he wins at the polls he plans to restart negotiations on rights and access to South China Sea while ensuring “friendly” relations with all countries. Malaysia is a claimant to some disputed features in the sea, along with China and other Southeast Asian countries such as the Philippines and Vietnam.
“We have to ensure our voice is heard because Malaysia does have islands in the area and this we must uphold,” he said.
— With assistance by Haslinda Amin
马来西亚大选在即 中资入侵问题成焦点
阿波罗新闻网 2018-04-10 讯
马来西亚即将举行第14届大选。马来西亚首相纳吉（Najib Razak）近日已经提前宣布解散议会，为大选铺平道路。本次大选，中国资本入侵问题有望成为重大看点。纳吉的老对手——前首相马哈迪（Mahathir Mohamad）承诺，若他当选，将彻查中国资本。
自2016年11月马来西亚首相纳吉从中国带回价值340亿美元的投资项目以来，前首相马哈迪（92岁）就一直对此批评，质疑纳吉政府开放中资投资基础建设、房地产会有损国家主权，马国朝野对中资问题攻防不断。
外界认为，本次大选，有关中共资本的争议将是一个重要看点。
马哈迪8日（当地时间）接受彭博社采访时说：“中共向马来西亚投资，建立企业，雇用当地人，如果能带来资本和技术的话，是值得欢迎的事，但是，现在我们从（中国的）投资中什么也没有得到，我们不欢迎中国这样式的投资。”
报导分析说，马来西亚前首相马哈迪的这番话，显示对中共资本侵入的忧虑，从澳大利亚到斯里兰卡，扩散至整个亚洲。
马哈迪以目前中企在马来西亚建造的超豪华公寓为例说：“马来西亚能够住得起那么昂贵公寓的人不多，最终招来外国人，哪个国家也不愿外国人大批涌入。”
据悉，去年进入马来西亚的外国投资中，中国资本最多，占7%。
马哈迪还以斯里兰卡为教训，说斯里兰卡政府从中国公司借钱，因无力偿还债务，去年底最终将战略港口移交给中共，“很多人不喜欢中共的投资”。
针对中共资本，他在4月2日的一场“青年的经济挑战”论坛上还表示，若在第14届大选赢得执政权，不排除取消“东海岸铁路计划”，马哈迪认为这由中国交通建设（CCCC）承建的铁路工程得耗资550亿令吉（约143.6亿美元），该铁路全程688公里、14小时车程，不符合成本效益，因现有的航空交通已足够。
马来西亚已建国61年，至今仍未政党轮替过。舆论广泛认为，这届选举将是纳吉上任以来面对的最大挑战，主要是过去5年，他面对贪腐指控并遭到国际许多司法单位的调查。这届选举也被认为是马来西亚反对党联盟——希望联盟（简称“希盟”）最有可能赢得大选执政中央政府的一次大选。目前领导“希盟”的前首相马哈迪曾经在马来西亚执政22年之久，仍雄风不减。
纳吉6日宣布，最高元首穆罕默德五世已同意他的请求，批准7日解散国会，准备举行新一届大选。
纳吉的五年首相任期将于今年6月24日结束，但是，在马来西亚最高元首同意的情况下，马来西亚首相有权在任期结束前的任何时间解散议会，进而重新举行大选。按照马来西亚宪法的规定，大选必须在议会解散后60天内举行。选民将投票选出马来西亚国会下议院222名代表。
来西亚的反中资争议与中国改革开放四十年
信源：今日新闻网｜编辑：2018-04-23
马来西亚前首相马哈迪（Mahathir）4月18日接受美联社专访时表示，若由他领导的在野党联盟-希望联盟（简称希盟）成功执政的话，会以斯里兰卡为前车之鉴，重新检讨与中方的贷款及投资项目。
距离马国第14届全国大选即将在5月9日举行，距离投票日不到一个月，马国希盟再次点燃中资议题，这也让外界怀疑马国是否产生了“反华”情绪的疑虑？
高龄93岁的马哈迪欲再度问鼎首相一职，近年他对中资提出的争议备受国际关注（图源：Reuters）
恰逢今年是中国大陆经济改革开放四十年，在这时间点上回顾中国大陆改革开放之初，其实得到了大量的东南亚华商支持，如泰国知名财团卜蜂集团当年便曾得到了中国大陆编号“001”的中外合资企业执照，而马国也有不少为改革开放带来的商机而参与中国的改革开放的华商，如郭氏集团的郭鹤年。甚至在1989年“六四事件”后，当中国面对西方国家的经济制裁，仍然有海外华商、港台资金涌入中国市场。
因此中国经济改革开放能成功，东南亚华商有一定的助力，而今天的中国，已从依赖外资发展经济，走向以“一带一路”对外投资。关于海外华商在“一带一路”倡议的角色，已从当年侨务政策的“以侨引资”，走向今日在“一带一路”倡议当中扮演“搭桥引路”的角色，对中方而言，熟悉中华文化与当地文化的海外华商，具有促进“民心相通”的功能，而这一点是马哈迪也不否认的。
当2003年第七届世界华商大会在马来西亚举行时，时任首相的马哈迪在开幕致辞说：“马来西亚是其中一个华商表现十分出色的国家，同时也是华人占人口比率较高的国家马来西亚的华人本身固然出色，他们也为国家造福，马来人提供良好的，即使非完美的行政，华人却提供了创业才能和经商技巧，使国家富裕，这种共生关系，从双方的专长角色中互惠互利”。可见当时的马哈迪是不反中资的，也欢迎华人参与中国商机以为马国创造财富。
因此对于今日马哈迪与其它在野党政治人物对中资的批评，可观察到其实目前马国的“反中资”情绪并不等于“反华”，“反华”二字有其模糊性，可谓“中华人民共和国”，也可谓“华人”、“华裔”，这会让外界误以为马国已在酝酿着族群冲突。而且在“中资争议”上，也有马国华裔在野政治人物对中资提出质疑的，如希盟的人民公正党副主席蔡添强在4月16日发文告，要求马国首相纳吉（Najib）政府应对中资的投资资讯要更加透明化，完整地公开所有中国在马国投资的任何资料和详情。
不过蔡添强也在文告强调“我们认同中国驻马来西亚大使白天所提及中国通过“一带一路”为马来西亚发展作出的贡献，也希望延续一切互惠互利的合作，共同发展国家经济。我们重申，希盟提出执政后进一步检讨中资，并不是要终止中资。”无可否认，希盟将中资议题带入选战策略，有其针对纳吉政权的政治议程，但也有其国安与民生问题的政治考量。
目前希盟对中资的批评，主要是针中方的贷款、对当地战略基础设施（港口，铁路）投资、有高房价与环保疑虑的房地产投资，而这些投资自有国安与当地民众反应的考量。以缅甸为例，当中资投资的密松水电站自2011年被吴登盛政府搁置后，即使缅甸已政权轮替了，但密松水电站至今未能复建，东南亚各国对于中资参与战略基础设施的建设，仍有顾虑。
不过另一方面，对于能给马国带来产业升级机会的中企，希盟未有做出批评，且采取较务实的态度。如进驻马国的华为，阿里巴巴、腾讯等科技企业，已以马来西亚作为进军东南亚市场的战略基地，在东南亚电商市场大展拳脚。而由在野党所执政的经济发展程度较高的槟城州与雪兰莪州，近年来也积极到中国招商引资，未受中资争议所影响，如雪兰莪州政府底下的资讯科技与电子商务理事会“SITEC”亦积极到中国大陆拜访科技企业，寻求两国在资讯科技领域的合作。
当年马哈迪任首相（1981年-2003年）时，中国未晋升世界第二大经济体，而马国是自2008年起才成为中国在东盟的最大贸易伙伴国，中国则自2009年起才成为马国最大贸易伙伴国。无可避免地，在走过改革开放的四十年光阴时过之下，当体量不大的东盟国家面对巨量的邻国中国的时候，必然有戒慎恐惧的情绪。
无论马国在5月9日的全国大选成绩为何，无论是否会实现马国的首次政权轮替，已纷扰了近一年半的“中资争议”，值得未来中方在处理与“一带一路”沿线国家的朝野政党与民间关系上，该有更为全面的顾虑，以做出更有效的沟通。
