Wan Saiful Wan Jan is author of this policy paper. He is the Founder and Chief Executive of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS). He is also Director of the Southeast Asia Network for Development (SEANET) and Chairman of the Istanbul Network for Liberty.

This policy paper begins with the promise made by the government to reduce its role in business as stated in the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP). It presents a general argument of why the government should not be involved in business. The progress made by the government to reduce its role in business is then examined through data showing its divestments in several listed companies.

This paper then demonstrates how this progress is offset by two factors – (i) the increased shares of Government-Linked Companies (GLCs) in the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) and (ii) the higher amount of combined GLC and GLIC asset acquisitions as opposed to asset disposals. This paper concludes with the argument that the government has not fulfilled its promise but in fact, has done the exact opposite.