Bawang Assan rep questions sharp drop in state interest income projected for 2023

Wong Soon Koh

KUCHING (Dec 3): Bawang Assan assemblyman Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh has questioned a sharp drop in Sarawak’s non-tax revenue for 2023, namely the interest income, at only RM650 million.

According to him, in the Revenue Estimates 2023, the state is projected to collect a revenue of RM11.035 billion.

In this regard, he said all along, the state’s interest income had always surpassed the RM1 billion mark: it was RM1.183 billion in 2016; RM1.177 billion in 2017; RM1.008 billion in 2018; RM1.006 billion in 2019; and RM1.058 billion in 2020.

Wong said after Year 2020, the interest income had dipped below RM1 billion; in 2021, it was only RM822 million and now for 2023, the estimate had further declined to RM650 million.

“We know that interest income is derived from the interest accrued on deposits of our Reserve Fund with the commercial banks or money loaned to Development Bank of Sarawak (DBoS).

“Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance 2, in his winding-up speech yesterday (Thursday), did not explain why there’s a sharp drop in interest income since 2020.

“I would like to ask: Could it be due to the reduction in our Reserve Fund? How much is our Reserve Fund now? How much of the Reserve Fund has been transferred to DBoS?

“Is DBoS paying interest as what all other commercial banks do?

“The Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance 2, in his winding-up speech, did not give any specific answers. Instead, he generalised by saying ‘our reserve has given the fiscal flexibility in managing our financial affairs’.

“He further said: ‘To complement the state’s development budget, the state government is compelled to take up more robust and strategic efforts by other alternative funding initiatives with the establishment of the state’s own development bank. This had enabled the state government to fund numerous projects’.

“All we would like to know (is) how much is the state Reserve Fund now? How much has our Reserve Fund been transferred to the Development Bank of Sarawak?

“Is DBoS paying interest to the state government for the amount it has received, like what other commercial banks would do?” he said in a statement yesterday.

Wong pointed out that it was important for the minister concerned to further clarify the issues and state them out in greater details, in the interest of the state.

from Borneo Post Online https://bit.ly/3OWCxhe
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