KUALA LUMPUR: Consumers are advised to spend money wisely instead of spending it frivolously on a lavish lifestyle.
The Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca) secretary-general Datuk Paul Selvaraj said many Malaysians tend to spend money for enjoyment but do not have good finance management.
“It is time for financial empowerment. People should save their extra money or rather wisely invest that money," he said.
“The youth especially needs to know how to differentiate between a want and a need when making a purchase. They need to make sure that their basic needs are covered before making a random splurge online,” he said.
Selvaraj was commenting on the survey findings by Institute of Strategic and International Studies (Isis) which reported that Malaysians were spending more on foreign cars, eating out and online shopping.
Isis reported that Malaysia was the biggest online game market in Southeast Asia where about RM2.45 billion was spent in the past 10 months.
“High spending does not mean responsible spending, and I want to encourage the latter. But this does not mean that people cannot enjoy their money, I am only asking them to be better at managing their finance,” he told the New Straits Times.
Consumers Association of Penang president S.M. Mohamed Idris said that the result of the survey by Isis was shocking as the cost of living was rising.
“I see the trend now that most people are going out of their way to buy expensive luxury goods to show off, to make their life seem perfect.
“When you have credit card loans, house loans, car loans, you are just indebted for life and this is modern slavery. People are now slave to expensive lifestyle,” he said, adding that this trend was worrying as Malaysian should be more cautious when spending.
As the survey also showed that Malaysians were spending less on buying groceries and preferred to eat out, Mohamed advised Malaysians to opt for cooking for themselves instead as it would be more economical.
Mohamed also stressed that Malaysians should put aside some money for emergencies.