KUALA LUMPUR : Parti Sosialis Malaysia’s (PSM) sole parliamentarian D^r Michael Jeyakumar has contended that both the government and the opposition employ the same growth-oriented approach on economic policies, which would eventually worsen global warming.

He told a PSM fund-raising dinner last night that both the Barisan Nasional-led federal government and Pakatan Rakyat-led states only strived to outdo each other in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) growth in order to prove they are better.

“They cannot think outside the box. Capitalism itself is a problem.
“When you grow, you must have energy and burn fuels, or more factory and transport that results in increased emission.

“The growth of GDP and carbon dioxide emission come side by side. As long as capitalism is in place, you cannot solve the problem of global warming,” said the second-term Sungai Siput MP.

Jeyakumar said PSM is proposing an alternative economics founded on socialism and people solidarity which prioritises wealth redistribution, sustainable source of energy and enhanced public transport.

Among the activists, which made up some 300 attendees to the dinner, included Bersih’s co-chair Ambiga Sreevenasan and A. Samad Said. However, none of the Pakatan leaders attended.

Bersih 4.0

Meanwhile, PSM also announced that they are going to hold a protest against Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) in front of the United States embassy next Friday at 2.30pm.

The party free trade agreement coordinator A. Sivarajan said the rally is to voice opposition against the controversial ongoing TPPA which is deemed bias to the American corporate interests.

In a separate issue, Ambiga told reporters that Bersih is going to organise another mega rally should the Election Commission presses ahead with constituency re-delineation exercise without cleaning up the electoral roll.

“How soon we organise Bersih 4.0 will depend on how soon they push for the re-delineation exercise,” she said.

Leven Woon, August 18, 2013