By Parliamentary Opposition Leader, Dap Secretary-General and MP for Tanjong, Lim Kit Siang, in Petaling Jaya on Wednesday, October 25, 1995:
Last-Minute budget proposal for Anwar Ibrahim
On Friday, the Finance Minister, Datuk Sri Anwar Ibrahim will present the 1996 budget to Parliament.
DAP had called on Anwar to make the 1996 Budget the first information Technology (11) budget in the country, designed to ancourage Malaysians to be among the most M-literate in the world so as to ensure that Malaysia can be a leader on the information superhighway.
An IT budget will create conditions to enable, for instance, the maximum number of Malaysians to get onto the internet in the shortest possible time.
I have received a letter this morning suggesting that the 996 budget should provide income tax rebate to individuals who have to pay RM350 annually to Jaring to be on the internet to underline the government’s earnestness and seriousness in helping Malaysia to be in the forefront of the information superhighway.
I agree with this suggestion and am therefore making a last-minute proposal to Anwar to Anwar to include this tax rebate in his Budget proposals on Friday.