The government's recent increase in petrol price must also be followed by cheaper car prices. As many know, our car prices are exorbitant and with the increase in fuel prices, this is a double whammy to a motorist.

How can the government claim to be wanting to ease the burden of the rakyat when our car prices are so exorbitant? Most people use half or one-third of their income to pay for ridiculous loans of seven years duration.

As the government is so fond of comparing fuel prices with that of Singapore and Thailand, let’s also compare car prices with the above-mentioned nations besides comparing fuel prices.

By the way, comparing our fuel prices with Singapore fuel prices does not hold any weight. Firstly, Singapore is not an oil producing country and secondly any fool would know that the Singaporeans ‘gaji’ is far, far more than what Malaysians earn.

In fact, on a one-to-one basis, most Singaporeans earn about three times more than what Malaysians earn. In fact, even a bell boy in the Singaporean hotel makes more than what most of our junior government doctors earn in government hospitals.

So RM5 a litre is not a big deal to a Singaporean earning S$5,000. His fuel bill is only a small proportion to what he earns.

Getting back to car prices, the same car, like a Honda City, Toyota Vios or a Toyota Altis, is far much cheaper in Thailand. In some cases, it can even be said to be nearly half the price of what is sold in Malaysia.

Cars are so cheap that most taxis in Thailand are the Toyota Altis. But here, the same car is categorised as a luxury car, with a price tag of nearly RM115,000. Most of it in taxes to the government.

The government must reduce the exorbitant taxes imposed on these cars in order to lessen the burden on the rakyat. I do not see why the government needs to save the RM56 billion fuel subsidy when they are earning so much from car taxes in Malaysia.

Where is all the revenue from car taxes going? And more importantly, where will the RM56 billion saved be going?

Like one article stressed , we are not a net importer of oil, so in theory, there is no subsidy at all. ‘The RM56 billion 'subsidy' per year is the extra amount that the government would have earned if it had exported all of our oil production’.

What Petronas produces is sufficient for local consumption and also for export. The government should not be thinking about exporting all of our oil at market prices to reap even more profits. First priority should be for its citizens.

Cater to local consumption first, then whatever excess can be exported at market rates. We should emulate Brunei, an oil-producing country like Malaysia where oil is cheaply sold. Praises to the Sultan of Brunei, for thinking about his rakyat first.