KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Wednesday announced new measures to address growing public disquiet about the rising cost of living, including a cash handout for all adult citizens and a promise to lower fuel prices.
The announcement came ahead of a planned protest to be held in Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur on Saturday, calling for Anwar to step down over escalating prices and a failure to deliver on promised reforms, among other concerns.
Anwar’s administration has carried out a number of measures to boost revenue and productivity this year, including a minimum wage hike, increased electricity tariffs on heavy power users, and new sales taxes on some imported fruits and luxury goods.
Anwar has said the moves were mainly targeted at large businesses and the wealthy, but critics have voiced fears that higher costs would eventually be passed down to consumers, including lower and middle income earners.
On Wednesday, Anwar said all adult Malaysians above 18 years old will receive a 100 ringgit ($23.67) one-off cash aid to be disbursed from August 31.
The government will spend a total 15 billion ringgit ($3.55 billion) in cash aid in 2025, up from 13 billion ringgit originally allocated for the year, he said.
Police have said they expect between 10,000 and 15,000 people to attend the Saturday protest, which has been organized by opposition parties.
“I acknowledge the complaints and accept that the cost of living remains a challenge that must be addressed, even though we have announced various measures thus far,” Anwar said.
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He added that further initiatives to aid those in poverty will be launched on Thursday.
Anwar said the government will also announce details on a long-awaited plan to remove blanket subsidies on the widely used RON95 transport fuel before the end of September.
Once the subsidy changes are implemented, Malaysians will see fuel prices at the pump drop to 1.99 ringgit per litre, compared to the current price of 2.05 ringgit, Anwar said.
Foreign nationals however will have to pay unsubsidized market prices for the fuel, he added.
Anwar also announced additional allocations for a government programme aimed at increasing access to affordable goods and necessities, and vowed to improve other existing aid measures.
Malaysia has seen inflation fall this year, but worries persist over increasing prices of basic necessities like food.
Data released this week showed consumer prices rising 1.1% from a year earlier last month, but the costs of food and beverages were up at a faster pace of 2.1%.
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