Oleh/By		:	DATO' SERI DR. MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD 
Tempat/Venue 	: 	HOTEL REGENT , KUALA LUMPUR 
Tarikh/Date 	: 	11/08/82 
Tajuk/Title  	: 	MAJLIS JAMUAN MAKAN MALAM DEWAN 
			PERNIAGAAN KEBANGSAAN MALAYSIA 




Yang Berbahagia Dr. Nawawi Mat Awin, Yang Di Pertua Dewan Perniagaan
Kebangsaan Malaysia; Tetamu-tetamu Kehormat, Tuan-tuan dan puan-puan yang
dihormati, Saya mengucapkan berbanyak-banyak terima kasih kepada Dewan
Perniagaan Kebangsaan kerana menjemput saya dan isteri saya ke Majlis
Jamuan Makan malam ini. Majlis ini sekali lagi memberi peluang kepada saya
untuk bertemu muka dengan ahli-ahli Dewan Perniagaan Melayu, Persekutuan
Pekilang-Pekilang Malaysia, Dewan Perniagaan Cina, Dewan Perniagaan India
dan Dewan Perniagaan Antarabangsa Malaysia yang menggabungkan golongan
peniaga dan pengusaha yang penting di negara kita ini.

2. Di samping itu, saya juga ingin mengambil kesempatan ini untuk
mengucapkan tahniah kepada Yang Berbahagia Dr. Nawawi Mat Awin di atas
perlantikannya sebagai Yang Di Pertua Dewan Perniagaan Kebangsaan Malaysia
yang baru. Saya yakin, dengan kerjasama saudara-saudara sekelian Dewan ini
akan terus maju di bawah pimpinan beliau.

Ladies and gentlemen, 

3. We are in the midst of a world-wide recession and much has been said
about it. As a country with an open economy, we are inevitably
affected. Our commodity prices, our exports and our foreign exchange
earnings have shrunk. The Government, the private sector and the people
are feeling the pinch. But, on the whole, there is no cause for panic, or
undue alarm. The situation is under control. What is needed is the
cooperation of everyone to cushion the repercussions and to take it as a
challenge to our resilience and as an opportunity to prove our
capabilities.

4. The current situation is the most opportune time for every Malaysian
"to pull up his socks and to tighten his belt." In the boom years that
followed independence we had become rather complacent and even
wasteful. As a people we had been used to being pampered and
protected. Consequently, although the effect of recession on Malaysia is
relatively mild we are almost panicky. We must check this and instead
examine the situation objectively in order to adjust and plan our
moves. There is little doubt that a lot can be done to render our commerce
and industries more efficient and competitive enough to weather the
adverse conditions prevailing. A lot too can be done in the areas that
traditionally have been left to our neighbours, for example marketing and
the so-called invisibles.

5. The recent budget review by the Government is both a move in cushioning
the effect of recession as well as getting us into the right frame of mind
and spirit to withstand a period of austerity and the challenges that come
with it. In a way the situation is godsend. It is an opportunity for us to
toughen ourselves so that the drive to make Malaysians hardworking and
more productive would be off to a good start.

6. Reduced Government spending will have a certain dampening effect on the
economy. But the Government intends to stimulate private sector
activities, particularly in the construction industries, so as to counter
the effect of the Government's austerity drive. Towards this end certain
traditional Government practices will be reviewed and modified so that the
role of the private sector can be enhanced. The net result should be to
reduce the slow-down of the economy as a whole.

7. One of the effects of recession is sluggish investment. In the
manufacturing sector the number of proposals has decreased. MIDA reports
that in the first six months of this year there were 228 proposals as
compared to 310 for the same period last year -- a decline of 20%. Still
it is heartening that investments are coming in. This is especially
satisfying since most of the developed countries are actually experiencing
negative growth, with a number of well-known corporations going into
bankruptcy and unemployment reaching unprecedented heights.

8. The fact that Malaysia continues to receive an appreciable number of
new investment proposals, averaging 40 per month, is clear indication that
there is confidence in the future of this country. The depression cannot
last forever and investments timed to come on stream when recovery takes
place is good strategy. Of course recovery may not come as expected. But
"No risk, no gain" is still a good adage. A raw material producer like
Malaysia would not be as developed as it is today if "risks" are
assiduously avoided.

9. As the Government is examining the need to discard certain age-old
practices, the private sector should also take advantage of the inactivity
to examine their role and practices in the past. One area that merits
serious attention is the marketing of Malaysian products. As you know the
Government has encouraged the setting up of trading companies or
"sogososhas". The idea is to force Malaysians to do their own marketing
instead of going through third parties. That this is a lucrative field can
be gauged from the prosperity of countries that service producers. It is
not just the profits from middlemen transactions that contribute to the
prosperity. The physical facilities such as ports and storage etc., and
the invisibles are spin-offs from marketing which accrue to middlemen.

10. Another area is the identification and study of new markets. Then
there is a host of new businesses that Malaysians are not even aware
of. They have only just discovered fast food and franchising. But if they
care to examine closely the economic activities in developed countries
they are bound to discover many more new businesses. FORTUNE magazine
recently described barter or swapping as a business that "generally
prosper in a recession." There must be many more ways of making money than
these. So long as they are honest and within the law the Government is
keen to encourage new businesses. After all, as an income-tax officer once
told me when he was lose - well, that's your business.

11. In my view Malaysian businessmen are a timid lot. They will not
venture into anything unless they are protected.

This makes them "stay at home" for only their own Government will afford
them protection. Abroad they can expect none and consequently they will
not venture forth to face open competition.

12. The Australian Prime Minister during his recent visit pointed out that
Malaysia exports only 19 million Australian dollars worth of goods to
Australia when the total exports from developing countries amount to 1,400
million Australian dollars. The Malaysian complaint is that the quotas for
reduced tariffs are too small. The fact is that Korea, Taiwan and Hong
Kong still manage to export to Australia well above their quota. If
Australia increases the number of items from developing countries that
attract reduced tariffs the chances are the Koreans and others will
increase their share while the increase for Malaysia would still be
minimal.

13. The problem is the timidity of Malaysians. We can only do business
when protected. Consequently we produce on a small scale for the local
market and expect to sell only the surplus outside the country. On the
other hand the newly industrialised countries (NIC) like Korea and Taiwan
design their plants on a scale that lower their unit cost and are capable
of selling at low prices abroad. The home market are frequently not served
at all.

14. It is time that Malaysians become more adventurous.

They should team up and go into large-scale production in order to be
competitive in the world market. Until they learn to do this they are
never ever going to get out of the import-substitute industries. If the
pioneers of the rubber industry had been timid Malaysians, we would not be
selling a kilo of rubber outside Malaysia. Thank God they weren't.

I am not usually thankful to the British but this is one instance when I
think they deserve to be thanked. It's because the British developed the
rubber industry and established it's markets all over the world that we
are able to buy companies like Sime Darby and Guthrie.

Ladies and Gentlemen, 

15. Lately, we have been stressing quality in Malaysian products and
services. There is to be found among Malaysians a feeling that the
greatest profit is obtained by reducing cost to the minimum. This is
especially so when Malaysians are producing peculiarly Malaysian products
for Malaysians. One has only to look at the bottles of soya sauce, chilly
sauce or bisquits to see how shoddy the products are and how poorly
packed. The idea seems to be to attract customers exclusively through
cheap prices.

16. While such products may sell to a certain group of consumers, it is
not going to be suitable for others and certainly it will not be suitable
for sale in foreign markets. Yet Malaysians like quality and good
packaging when buying foreign products. There seems to be two standards,
one for Malaysians when they produce anything and another for the same
Malaysians when they buy foreign goods.

It is about time that quality is emphasised in Malaysian goods for local
market and certainly for export. The grading and standard for ensuring
quality that we insist upon in the rubber industry should also be extended
to all Malaysian industries. That way we will become known for quality. Of
course, SIRIM is there, but the private sector should have their own
set-up where extraordinary goods and consistent quality should be
rewarded.

17 Finally may I say something about ethics in business.

There has been a few instances when foreign traders have been cheated by
the unscrupulous in this country.

Frequently, it is difficult for any legal action to be taken because these
people are quite smart. The Government can oversee and even take action
but that can only be done after the damage is done. The better way is to
prevent such occurences. Perhaps exporters should have associations which
certify bona fide traders. This will reassure foreign importers and reduce
the chances of the unscrupulous from cheating people who have only just
begun to do business with Malaysia. Nothing is more damaging to the
nation's economy than a bad reputation. All of us must protect our
reputation like old maids their virtue.

18. I have tried to highight some of the problems that, in my view,
prevent Malaysia from being more prosperous than it is. I am not a
businessman and I accept that you know better. But the Government is very
keen to make Malaysia a great industrial and trading nation. There is no
way we can do this without the cooperation of the private sector. But we
can say with equal validity that we cannot achieve our objective with a
timid and Government-dependent private sector. I hope you will mull over
this.

19. Finally, thank you once again for your kind invitation to my wife and
I. We wish you all the best.