Teach Young Financial Prudence

DE facto Law Minister Nancy Shukri, in responding to a ques­tion by Datuk Hashbullah Osman (BN-Gerik), told Parliament on Nov 17, 2015 that more than 22,000 below the age of 35 had been declared bankrupt during the last four years.

This is alarming and probably unprecedented in the history of the Insolvency Department.

It is a stark reflection of the lack of financial prudence on the part of Generation Y.

Lavish spending and high living have resulted in thousands of them, on the threshold of adult­hood, already being burdened with mounting debts, unable to service their personal loans, car loans, credit card loans and many other commitments.

Debt is something like quick sand in that it has the tendency to draw its victim deeper and deeper in.

Financial prudence is not an inborn trait but a virtue that has to be acquired.

It is a dereliction of duty if par­ents do not educate their children on the importance of living within their means besides nurturing the saving habit.

How a man uses money, makes it, saves it, and spends it is per­haps one of the best tests of prac­tical wisdom.

Financial institutions are also partly to blame for this deplora­ble state of affairs.

Personal loans are granted with­out collateral. Similarly credit cards are issued with high credit limits and it is easy for one to get more than one card.

If customers sources of income, spending culture, repayment pat­tern and unavoidable commit­ments are closely monitored, habitual defaulters can be detected and disciplined early.

In this way, thousands of lavish spenders could have been saved from bankruptcy long before they reached the beyond redemption stage.

Youths are the pillars of a pro­gressive nation. The Government must put in place proactive meas­ures to prevent them from ending up as bankrupts and becoming a liability to society.

Source: TheStar/Friday/20 November 2015/By: S.Sundareson.

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