KUALA LUMPUR, January 3 — DAP MP for Bagan Lim Guan Eng has called on the federal government to tap into Malaysia’s RM2.1 trillion local bond market to raise more than RM20 billion for part-payment of outstanding excess tax refunds owed to companies.
Lim said the refunds have remained unpaid for over five years since 2020, despite the sums belonging to businesses, and argued that settling them would stimulate the economy, improve corporate cash flow and allow employers to reward workers with bonuses or ang pows ahead of the Lunar New Year in February 2026.
Lim added that raising RM20 billion would amount to just one per cent of the local bond market and could be done within a month without adverse monetary impact, noting that Malaysia’s external debt remains manageable.
He also urged the government to extend 10 per cent of Bumiputera allocations to non-Bumiputeras without reducing existing provisions, saying a fairer distribution would better reflect the country’s demographic and economic realities.
