I vividly recall how the Ministry of International Trade and Industry griped the nation with the Approved Permits (hereinafter referred to as 'AP') scandal some time in 2006. I remember I was a university student in my penultimate year reading my first degree in Marketing and International Trade and how I was dumbfounded by such practices of crony capitalism hidden behind the cloak of affirmative action.
To begin, what are APs anyway? Very basically, they are the 'passport' for foreigns cars intending to be sold in Malaysia. Without an AP for your Ferraris or Subarus, these cars are no different from illegal immigrants awaiting arrest, detention and deportation by the relevant authorities.
Forget the fact that only Bumiputeras are entitled to APs under the affirmative action policy (NEP); forget the fact that the same Bumiputeras, instead of starting up a business to sell these imported cars, as was intended by the affirmative action policy to achieve economic equality, sell off these APs for a quick buck at RM30,000 a pop to the non-Bumiputeras; forget the fact that the law is not in a position to enforce, penalise, deter or even prevent the recurrences of the above; forget the fact that the non-Bumiputeras and their practical business acumen made a fortune from starting up businesses to sell these cars and are blamed by Malay nationalists for 'stealing from the Tanah Melayu'. Forget all that.
The purpose of this post is not to debate the social, economic and political merits of the AP policy. Rather, it is to give readers a general breakdown of the costs of foreign cars in Malaysia.
Of late, I chanced upon a letter written by an anonymous individual. I shall regurgitate the contents of his letter in my own words.
The letter started off by taking the Toyota Estima as an example. In the United Kingdom, the said car costs roughly GBP 9,000 inclusive of all other miscellaneous costs. Given that that GBP 1 is equivalent to MYR 4.8 at the time of writing this post, the said car should cost more or less MYR 45,000. What? So cheap, you say? Fine. Let us convert the currency when the UK was in her heydays where GBP 1 gives us MYR 7. The cost of the said car would only be MYR 63,000 or so.
Here comes the kicker. What about the price of the said car in Malaysia? MYR 160,000.
The breakdown. Given that the car costs MYR 60,000 or so, add to that the AP which would cost RM 40,000 for this particular category of cars, MYR 40,000 for the Costing, Insurance and Freight charges, and another MYR 20,000 for tax, duty and excise.
I hope this post has crystallised doubts on this issue and why the masses of society are infuriated, disappointed and above all CHEATED by this so-called affirmative action policy which is nothing more than a cover up for practices for corruption, extortion and cronyism. When the government of the day is meant to take care of its people, regardless of race, religion, creed and so on, this one engages in daylight robbery.