Former Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad has criticised the high tariffs imposed by the United States (US) while giving a stern warning that it will have a negative impact that will damage the US economy more than other trading nations.
In an interview with FMT, Dr. Mahathir highlighted how rising prices of goods in the US will result in higher living costs, prompting workers to demand higher wages, thus making the US less competitive globally.
Describing Trump as ‘world-blind’, Mahathir criticised the American president’s narrow-minded views which often spark conflicts with other countries to the point of consuming the people in his own country.
The statement, which was mixed with criticism from the Founder of the PEJUANG Party, came after tensions were sparked by controversial statements by US commentator Bill O’Reilly about Malaysia’s weak purchasing power and describing Malaysians as ‘poor’.
However, the statement was immediately rebuked by the Minister of Communications, Fahmi Fadzil, citing World Bank data showing Malaysia's GDP per capita is higher than expected, making Malaysia an upper-middle-income country.
Interestingly, the issues raised in this debate are clearly not in favor of America, exposing the weaknesses of its government in controlling the country's economy.
However, the question is, can it open America's eyes before they destroy their own economy?
Or will they attack Malaysia for this bitter statement?
