Some people may get the wrong impression that I am a person who will give away financial benefit easily to the other party. If I were the leader of a country, would I give away everything?
The answer is "no".
The people who know me well will also know that I am a frugal person. Some might even describe me as "stingy". So, you can be sure that your money is safe with me, if you ever have to entrust it to me, because I would not spend it away easily.
Let me explain first why I like to waive the penalty of $350 million for the cancellation of the High Speed Rail. I have two reasons:
a) Both countries did spend money on the feasibility studies and preparatory work for the High Speed Rail. The money spend on each side is likely to be similar in amount. If Malaysia asked to cancel the project for financial reasons, they would have incurred their expenses also. Out of goodwill and friendly, I would waive the penalty.
I would also consider the money spent ($350 million or more) is not wasted. I believe that the High Speed Rail will be feasible at some time in the future. If it is re-introduced, the money spent on the preparatory work would be recovered. It is a matter of time.
b) On the price of water, I have held for a long time that Malaysia's request for 50 sens per 1,000 gallons is fair. Yes, it is an increase of 16 times from the current level of 3 sens. But we are talking about a passage of 65 years, from 1962 to 2017. Surely, inflation would have justified the increase?
The revised price of 50 sens plus the cost of treatment would probably be much lower than the cost of producing water from other sources, such as desalination and reverse osmosis. I do not know the actual figures, but I trust my gut feel and judgment. I will be happy to be enlightened with the facts.
Anyway, based on the volume of water that is drawn under the agreement, the revised price of 50 sens work out to $15 million A YEAR. This is a small sum of money compared to a national budget of $60 billion.
Be helpful
When we were poor, every dollar is important to us. I can understand this attitude.
However, when we are financially well off, we do not need to be so stingy. We can afford to be generous and helpful. The money that we forego can go to help the other party a great deal, especially when they are financially weak.
I am not talking about giving away a lot of money. It is money that we can afford to give away and get the goodwill and appreciation of the other party.
Be prudent
If you had followed my views closely, you would know that I am unhappy about the large sums of money that are being spent on infrastructure and weapons.
I believe that we could exercise cost control and reduce these expenditures. At heart, I am still a frugal and prudent person.
But when it comes to negotiating with a friendly neighbor, I would prefer to take a more generous approach, because we can afford to be more generous, and it would be more helpful to our neighbor.
Thank you for reading my post completely.
Tan Kin Lian
The answer is "no".
The people who know me well will also know that I am a frugal person. Some might even describe me as "stingy". So, you can be sure that your money is safe with me, if you ever have to entrust it to me, because I would not spend it away easily.
Let me explain first why I like to waive the penalty of $350 million for the cancellation of the High Speed Rail. I have two reasons:
a) Both countries did spend money on the feasibility studies and preparatory work for the High Speed Rail. The money spend on each side is likely to be similar in amount. If Malaysia asked to cancel the project for financial reasons, they would have incurred their expenses also. Out of goodwill and friendly, I would waive the penalty.
I would also consider the money spent ($350 million or more) is not wasted. I believe that the High Speed Rail will be feasible at some time in the future. If it is re-introduced, the money spent on the preparatory work would be recovered. It is a matter of time.
b) On the price of water, I have held for a long time that Malaysia's request for 50 sens per 1,000 gallons is fair. Yes, it is an increase of 16 times from the current level of 3 sens. But we are talking about a passage of 65 years, from 1962 to 2017. Surely, inflation would have justified the increase?
The revised price of 50 sens plus the cost of treatment would probably be much lower than the cost of producing water from other sources, such as desalination and reverse osmosis. I do not know the actual figures, but I trust my gut feel and judgment. I will be happy to be enlightened with the facts.
Anyway, based on the volume of water that is drawn under the agreement, the revised price of 50 sens work out to $15 million A YEAR. This is a small sum of money compared to a national budget of $60 billion.
Be helpful
When we were poor, every dollar is important to us. I can understand this attitude.
However, when we are financially well off, we do not need to be so stingy. We can afford to be generous and helpful. The money that we forego can go to help the other party a great deal, especially when they are financially weak.
I am not talking about giving away a lot of money. It is money that we can afford to give away and get the goodwill and appreciation of the other party.
Be prudent
If you had followed my views closely, you would know that I am unhappy about the large sums of money that are being spent on infrastructure and weapons.
I believe that we could exercise cost control and reduce these expenditures. At heart, I am still a frugal and prudent person.
But when it comes to negotiating with a friendly neighbor, I would prefer to take a more generous approach, because we can afford to be more generous, and it would be more helpful to our neighbor.
Thank you for reading my post completely.
Tan Kin Lian
1 comment:
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Bank Khata
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