KUALA LUMPUR: The Unity Government’s effort to address the rising cost of living through the cash assistance programme Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR) proves its concern for the welfare of the people, especially from the B40 group.
Dean of the Human Ecology Faculty, University Putra Malaysia, Prof Dr Mohamad Fazli Sabri said the aid could increase people’s purchasing power, especially when the country is still in the economic recovery phase post-Covid-19.
“The term Rahmah came from the word ‘Rahima’, which means compassion and mercy. This shows that the government truly understands the sufferings the people had to endure due to the pandemic and rising cost of living,” he said when appearing as a guest on Bernama TV’s Malaysia Petang Ini programme.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the first phase of the STR worth RM1.67 billion would be disbursed to 8.7 million people in the B40 group in stages from today.
STR is one of the initiatives under the ‘Payung Rahmah’ conceptual approach, which also involves cooperation from three ministries, namely the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and the Ministry of Economy.
Elaborating on the Payung Rahmah concept, Mohamad Fazli opined that the initiative is short-term and should be expanded so that its implementation is more sustainable.
He said the government also needs to look at the empowerment of human capital through reskilling, upskilling and cross-skilling and focus on micro, small and medium entrepreneurs as well.
Sharing the same sentiment was an economist from Putra Business School, Prof Dr Ahmed Razman Abdul Latiff, who suggested that the Unity Government pay attention to providing high-income job opportunities for the B40 and vulnerable groups.
“This can be done through the cooperation of all parties, including employers, by reducing dependence on foreign workers.
“Digitalisation or automation will also enable qualified locals to receive higher salaries. The government can ensure these opportunities by upskilling and reskilling them to meet the job demand,” he said.
Meanwhile, economist Dr Nungsari Ahmad Radhi is of the opinion that the government needs to re-examine the provision of subsidies so that the country does not spend too much and bring a new burden to its financial position.
“If you disburse cash to targeted groups, you have to spend less on subsidies for prices. You can’t do both or else, we will get a ‘crazy’ situation like spending tens of billions (ringgit) to subsidise petrol prices while at the same time spending tens of billions on building MRT,” he said. -Bernama
