COMMENT | When persistent mistakes and misstatements continue to be made by no less than the prime minister on key economic data and the level of the ringgit, one has to wonder who are these advisers feeding him such data and advice.

It seems almost a deliberate attempt to present the data in a manner that will make people misunderstand them rather than inform, educate, and give a true view of the situation.

Rarely are short-term movements in the ringgit because of fundamental reasons, whether positive or negative.

In the latest example, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said in a Bernama report, and I quote verbatim: “The ringgit is at its strongest level in 14 years due to the coalition government’s policies and collective efforts to develop the country.”