The Tax Alamo

The blog’s been held up, thanks to the government. Before anyone jumps to conclusions I must add that it’s been the taxman in particular. As the June 30 deadline loomed last month I was warned of a high tax bill stemming from profits from both my companies and various fees/salaries made to me.

Thus, the last month was a mad scramble to find lost receipts and juggle expenses into some kind of financial jigsaw that was finally coming together in the last few days. The tax that I have to pay is now what I expected. Like my idol Kerry Packer once said to his government: 'If anybody in this country doesn't minimise their tax, they want their heads read, because as a government, I can tell you you're not spending it that well that we should be donating extra!"

Well, I wasn't the only one thinking like that. In Taman Desa, it seemed every vendor, businessman, consultant, small business owner and freelancer was hanging out in a coffee shop, talking nervously to bespectacled middle-aged men about tax relief, depreciation and claimable deductions, etc. Coffee consumption was at an all-time high and so was electricity usage. Forget the environment, this was our money at stake!

It seems true that Taman Desa residents, or Taman Desans, are a street-smart, money-savvy and sturdy lot. And we’re proudly entrenched in the Opposition. We make up the four or five suburbs in the Seputeh constituency that falls under the Democratic Action Party (DAP).

Taman Desans in particular, are a tight bunch too. When crime rises so much as a sniffle above the minimal rate we take action into our own hands. No, not by doing a Clint Eastwood but by having citizens patrols and outsourced security guards on bike through a shared monthly cost.

But my mate Mike has a conspiracy theory that the government is trying to wrestle back control of Taman Desa. Plenty of Malay housing is flooding in. A mosque suddenly sprouted out of nowhere a couple of years back. More Malays here would tip the scales back to government favour, unless of course, these residents were supporters of the opposition Malay party PKR (People’s Justice Party) headed by former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Whatever the case, they'll have a battle on their hands. It'll be like the Alamo, with many abled Travis, Bowie and Crockett-like defenders.

Just in case, I’m going to finally register and get myself on the election roll. My mates Mike and Charles haven't figured out if they'll do it but I hope so. The feeling out there is that it's time for a change. If Malaysians are smart about their taxes I hope those of us who really want change will be smart enough to elect for it.