Dr Mahathir Mohamad sank his claws into Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and his supporters for defending GST as crucial to the government's coffers.

The former premier said the impression given is that in the absence of GST, the government cannot function and development would stall.

However, he said there is no mention of how Malaysia was once developed without GST to the point of being called an "Asian Tiger".

Mahathir argued that the government's revenue from 2009 to 2017, since Najib assumed office, was three folds higher than from 1995-2002, during Mahathir's tenure.

With the increase in revenue, the former premier questioned the need for additional taxes such as GST.

"GST is the biggest contributing factor to the cost of living ballooning. The removal of subsidies, including for fuel, has placed a huge burden on the people, especially those from the low and middle-income brackets.

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"It is certain that the cost of living would lessen if GST is abolished," he added in a blog posting.

According to Mahathir, abolishing GST would not affect the administration and development of the nation.

"If GST is needed today, it is because a lot of government funds have been misused and wasted. This misuse increases as the general election draw closer," he alleged.

Mahathir, who is now chairperson of Pakatan Harapan, also claimed that the value of government contracts are increased so that portions can be used by the ruling party or certain individuals.

Najib incurring more debt

The former premier claimed that although the government is saddled by massive debt, Najib, however, chooses to incur more.

"The East Coast Railway Link (ECRL) does not have the potential, but its construction has been planned so that more money can be borrowed.

"RM50 billion is owed to China for the ECRL when only RM35 billion is needed," he said.

Apart from this, Mahathir said a high-speed rail from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur is also in the works.

"This requires RM60 billion. The LRT and MRT (lines) would also consume billions," he added.

In the past, Mahathir said numerous projects were carried out without GST, including the North-South Highway (Plus), KLIA, ports, hospitals, schools, universities and so forth.

Therefore, the former premier argued that the administration and development of the nation would not be disrupted without GST, but would improve while debt is reduced.

"GST is not needed. What is important is corruption and wastage-free administration and development," he added.

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