Foreigners in Malaysia also have the right to complain about dual pricing

SATURDAY, AUGUST 06, 2016

Re: “Expats in Thailand more justified in complaining”, by Niels Jeffreys, August 3.

I think the above writer is correct in stating that foreigners in Thailand are more justified in complaining about the dual pricing structure than are foreigners in Malaysia, since it occurs with greater frequency in the former case. Nonetheless, the fact remains that foreigners in Malaysia also have a right to complain. I never stated that foreigners in Malaysia have it worse, but just that the dual pricing structure also exists in this more advanced nation.
Mr Jeffreys lost me when he stated: “People paying admission to an attraction in a country where they (do) not live, work or own property, aren’t married to a local and don’t speak the language, are regarded as ordinary tourists who haven’t earned the right to criticise pricing parity”.
Oh really! I think anyone who goes anywhere has a right to complain if he/she is charged more than the locals are. Anyway, are the above universally accepted criteria, or specific only to the previously mentioned writer?  And even if they are true, how is, say, a ticket officer at a tourist attraction, supposed to distinguish between a foreigner who is living in a country or only visiting? Also, Mr Jeffreys is assuming that virtually all foreigners in Malaysia are only tourists and not workers. I highly doubt that this is true, as it seemed to me that many foreigners from India and even China work there. These people have less disposable income than ordinary Malaysians do. So in a way, it is even worse to have the dual pricing structure here, since these foreign workers could hardly be expected to pay more. At least in the case of Thailand, the presence of many well-off expat workers ensures that the dual pricing structure at tourist events would have negligible effect on the vast majority of them.
Thai teacher back from Penang
Rayong