NO CASH HANDOUTS UNDER ECONOMIC STIMULUS PACKAGES

SARIKEI (Malaysia), April 20 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian government does not
give cash handouts to the people under its economic stimulus packages, said
Deputy Information, Communications and Culture Minister Joseph Salang.

The packages where the government pumped out huge amounts of funds to
finance economic activities were purely to revitalise the country's economy, he
said at a meet-the-people session at R.Rachak in Pakan, near here Sunday to
clarify misperception among some rural folks about the stimulus package.

"Among the main beneficiaries will be the giant companies where they will be
able to generate many job and business opportunities and at the same time stop
retrenching their workers.

"When they are back healthy, they can pay taxes to the government," he said.
Salang said the ordinary people too would benefit as with the income derived
from the taxes, the government could finance more development programmes or
provide subsidies and the like.

He said due to the present economic meltdown, many governments in the world
were now coming up with their own economic stimulus packages for the same
reasons.

Salang assured the rural folks that the government would continue to look
after their welfare during the difficult time, adding that the recent petrol
rebates given to longboat owners was a good example.

Earlier on arrival at the 60-door longhouse, the longest in the Pakan
district, he declared open its electricity supply project costing more than
RM500,000.

The function was his first in his Julau parliamentary constituency after
assuming his new portfolio.

Sarikei is a town, and the capital of the Sarikei District (985 square
kilometers) in Sarikei Division, Sarawak, east Malaysia.

-- BERNAMA