MIRI: The Federal Government has to review rural transportation subsidy to help stabilise prices of essential goods and fuel in rural Sarawak as well as to lighten the burden of the rural folk.
Deputy Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Chong Chieng Jen said he would bring up the issue that there was a need to review the scheme so that it was fully utilised to benefit the people.
“There is also a need to ensure there is no wastage and abuse of the subsidy,” he said after inspecting the prices of goods around the town here.
Under the previous government, he said, the scheme did not fully benefit rural folk.
The Member of Parliament for Stampin said the government was committed to create a new system which was more effective in monitoring the subsidy distribution.
“We hope the fund (subsidy) can reach and benefit the targeted group. We need to further discuss the matter with other relevant agencies and come up with the right approach,” he said.
Chong said reviews and studies needed to be done at various levels involving government officers, the rural community as well as geographical aspects.
“Some of the ‘point of sale’ is located over 100km away, which contributes to high transportation cost,” he said.
“However, there are also wastages due to lack of manpower to monitor the process, especially those ‘point of sales, in the interior,” he said.
For the time being, Chong said, there was no plan to increase the manpower for enforcement but to review a more holistic approach in monitoring the prices of the goods.
Apart from that, Sales and Services Tax (SST) was expected to lower the living cost, he said.
