Mr Prime Minister! We, the T15, are not your enemies!
October 30, 2024

Ahmad Farouk Musa || 30 October 2024

Dear Mr Prime Minister, we are writing this piece as your friend. As your friend who struggled for you during the time of Reformasi. As your friend who defended you during all the allegations against you. As your friend who fought ‘tooth and nail’ to bring down the greatest kleptocrat the world has ever known. As your friend who believed in a new dawn of greater democracy and freedom once we bring down the previous corrupt regime.

Unfortunately, as leader of the country, your priorities seem misplaced. We feel that instead of training your guns against the kleptocrats—including your right-hand man who was freed on DNAA despite a prima facie case against him—you are making an enemy out of us, the so-called T15. You disdainfully tag us as the “Mahakaya”. As if we are sucking the wealth of this country for our own benefit. You berated us, almost every day, for allegedly benefiting from the government’s subsidies. You forgot that we constitute that segment of the society who contributes the maximum in term of taxes. According to statistics, in 2022 alone, we the T15, contributed almost 80% of income taxes. Yet you castigate us as if we are the parasites and blood-suckers of the community.

Many of us were not born with a silver spoon in our mouth. We worked very hard for many years to reach this position in the society. We burnt the midnight oil and excelled academically to attain this status. We led a life full of sacrifice and self-immolation. Yet, in your war against corruption, you directed your gun against us. You made an enemy out of us. In your dreams, you imagined us gobbling up the benefits meant for the poor and the needy, the B40 of the community. But maybe you didn’t realise, or maybe in fact, it was a strategy by your Economic Minister to rationalise (read: cut) subsidy, such that you have to build a narrative that lures people to believe that there is one segment of the community who is selfishly and shamelessly reaping the benefit of the subsidies.

You built a perfect narrative so that people will naively accept the rationalisation of subsidies. But in reality, we don’t consume subsidised cooking oil, eggs, or rice. Instead, we purchase premium cooking oil, grade A fortified eggs and Basmathi rice. Not because we want to show off our wealth, but simply because we can afford such luxuries. The narrative that we grab subsidised items meant for B40 is a false narrative. Similarly, many of us in the T15 use RON97 petrol, not the subsidised RON95. Simply because we drive continental cars. Not to flaunt our wealth, but simply because these continental cars are much safer on our roads. Just imagine spending many years training as a surgeon only to be killed in a mere road traffic accident. Isn’t it a loss not only to the family but also a loss to the community and country?

Furthermore, you made it so difficult for those who deserve to get back their money, the diesel cash subsidy, from the Budi Madani that many of them simply gave up. Until today, no one knows the rationale behind that database PADU, which was suggested and proactively promoted by your Economic Minister. Touted as a comprehensive system that would supposedly assist the government in targeted subsidy, it finally ended up as a white elephant. How much money was wasted in building that database? Let’s not downplay it: the development of the PADU hub drained a whopping 85.27 million ringgit from the national coffers! That’s not a small amount for an unproven database. Until today, we have yet to see how this database will benefit the people, barring the developer.

In fact, this so-called rationalisation of subsidy and all the economic policies of your Economic Minister is straight from the textbooks of the neoliberal economic system—an economic philosophy that emphasizes free trade, deregulation, and a reduction in government spending. It is a laissez-faire system that advocates minimal government interference in the economic issues of the people in an attempt to purportedly stimulate economic growth.

What you and your Economic Minister have been doing is similar to the ideas suggested by the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and the World Bank, the champions of neoliberalism. We have seen the negative impact of this neoliberal agenda on our health sector. Apart from education, the health sector is supposed to be a top priority for a government. The free market approach to public services such as health and education is fundamentally misguided. Indeed, unlike other industries, public services are not meant to be profitable sectors. We feel that your neoliberal strategy will exacerbate inequality, such that the poor will never get medical treatment and education at par with the rich.

Why then are we in the T15 segment of the society concerned about this neoliberal agenda promoted by your government? Admittedly, we can afford the best medical care and also fund our children’s education in private institutions. The answer is simple: we, the T15, care for the society. We contribute 26% of our yearly salaries to income tax. We want this money to be spent wisely for the rakyat, for better healthcare and education. We don’t mind if the B40 does not even contribute a single cent to the coffers of the Inland Revenues Board (IRB); we know that they are poor and do not reach the threshold to pay any taxes.

But we were very dismayed and disgusted when individuals who owed millions to the IRB were rewarded with lofty positions such as Director of MATRADE (Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation). Retrospectively, the greatest kleptocrat was given more than a 50% discount on fine and jail term. Of course, you can hide behind the Royal decree. But some discerning people could clearly see what was happening behind the scene. This made all your diatribe against corruption ring hollow. You have a misplaced sense of priority. You launched a tirade against imaginary kleptocrats but ignored the real plunderers in front of your very eyes.

We are sorry if all these words sound very harsh. However, we hope you realise that the derogatory term ‘Mahakaya’ used against us was indeed very bitter and painful to swallow. We want you, including your arrogant and self-obsessed Economic Minister, to understand that we contributed the most financially to the country. Additionally, many of us in the T15 gave back to the society in terms of our expertise, which is intangible. Hence, do not make enemies out of us. Don’t forget that we were your staunch supporters in the reform agenda for the betterment of the country, although many of us are now left disillusioned.

Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa holds a PhD in Surgery from Monash University Australia and Masters of Medicine in Surgery from Universiti Sains Malaysia. He is also a doctoral candidate in Islamic Studies at Universiti Muhammadiyah Malaysia.


Do you agree?

T15s are like nons. Imaginary enemies.

i wish my england is as good as his

Decent reply.

Now, stop divide and conquer. The talk about T20 T80... All these are just ktard type of discussion.

Government policy, should just directly use taxable income to decide who gets aid. Which is something already LHDN already know.

Not rocket science and just about every blokes have Ewallet.

This post has been edited by skywardsword: Nov 2 2024, 06:14 PM

Normal lah
Government needs a scapegoat for their mismanagement


Easier to blame than admit fault

M4a1 will ask t15 who u voted last time ?

Thank you for your heartfelt letter. I appreciate your candid expression of concerns regarding our government’s approach and the implications it has for the T15 community.

I want to acknowledge the struggles and sacrifices you and many others have made to achieve your current status. Your contributions to the economy, particularly in terms of tax revenue, are invaluable, and it is essential for me as Prime Minister to ensure that every segment of society feels heard and respected.

I understand that the rhetoric around subsidies and economic policy may have created a narrative that seems dismissive of your contributions. It was never my intention to paint anyone as a "parasite." I recognize that the T15 plays a critical role in our economy and contributes significantly to the nation’s welfare. Your support during the reform era has been pivotal, and I value that deeply.

Regarding the issues raised about the current economic policies, I hear your frustrations, especially concerning the implementation of the PADU database and its effectiveness. It’s crucial for us to learn from such initiatives and ensure that they serve the intended purpose of supporting the most vulnerable while being transparent and efficient.

I am committed to addressing corruption and holding all accountable, regardless of their position. The perception of inconsistency in our efforts is troubling, and I will work to ensure that our actions align more closely with our rhetoric. The fight against corruption is ongoing, and I recognize the importance of maintaining the trust of all citizens, including the T15.

I value the expertise and resources that the T15 community brings to our society. It is my hope that we can work together towards solutions that foster economic growth and social equity. I welcome ongoing dialogue as we navigate these complex issues, and I am committed to ensuring that your voices are part of the conversation moving forward.

Thank you for your candid feedback and for your continued support of the reform agenda.

So someone is demanding return of investment fighting fo BMX while calling pipul kleptokrat

Potong subsidy gula,cooking oil,flour, cooking gas, diesel for nelayan

I mean, he’s maybe half right lol. My family never consumes subsidized food items because we buy organic food, but we do consume RON95 coz cheap.

I am t15. I dun mind kena taxed more. Janji no puas.

I hope people are more realistic. It is either head or tail. U tak suka madani then u get taliban.

Well written.

I put TLDR for the main point in each paragraph:

Para 1: Dear PMX, I'm your supporter.

Para 2: PMX declare war on the T15 instead of focusing on kleptocrats.

Para 3: Continue of previous point: PMX misrepresented T15 as selfishly benefiting from subsidies to justify cuts, instead of addressing actual corruption.

Para 4: T15 did not benefit from subsidies as they often purchase non-subsidized goods.

Para 5: PADU wasting money, attack on minister.

Para 6: Calling out government policies as neoliberalism and claiming it does not suit current situation.

Para 7: Neoliberal economic policies influenced by IMF and World Bank and potentially worsen inequality in essential sectors like healthcare and education.

Para 8: T15 paid tax and think the government should manage the tax revenue wisely by avoiding neoliberalism for the good of the poor.

Para 9: Not happy with Najib's daughter being appointed for MTRADE director and Najib himself get discount for jail term. Madani misplaced its priority.

Para 10: Okay peaceout.

Para 11: Ayam intellectual.

This post has been edited by Sycamore: Nov 2 2024, 06:52 PM

How much did you consume RON95 per month? Total family consumption, may I know?

How he know he is T15 when gomen cant even define it yet?

Someone needs to be the targeted scapegoat boogieman and the top 15% of rich voters has been sacrificed. No wait.. it's the top 15% rich voters that actually declare their income and paid proper income tax that has been chosen.

His logic, madani is terrible, so puas must be good. Didn't think that u jatuh into longkang already, and there is a larger sinkhole waiting beside u, one wrong step gg no more point of return

Rafizi, you can include this guy as T15 in your list. Just need to find 14.999999% more.