Prepare all measures ahead of recession - FOMCA
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While the public remained dilligent, Saravanan also outlined criteria that the government should prioritise to ensure the effectiveness of policies introduce to reduce the cost of living expenses, particularly that of food costs, healthcare, transportation, childcare and education.
“B40 households spend 48 per cent of their income on food. If the household income is RM1,000, they would spend almost RM500 on food. By increasing the level of food production, we can save billions and channel back the money to the public,” he told Sinar Daily, adding that food prices in Malaysia were high because a significant amount of food is imported from other countries.
Saravanan emphasised that healthcare was also an area which required attention because of its high cost even with government assistance, and he called on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to also examine the healthcare policy, which also required swift action to reduce costs to the people.
Saravanan said that government measures that can assist the people with the high cost of living should also be developed prior to the onset of the impending recession.
On transport, Saravanan highlighted the fact that the public transportation system in Malaysia was inefficient, which drove the majority of the people to use private transportation, which costs between 20 and 30 per cent of their disposable income.
“They need to spend on petrol, road tax, toll, maintenance and other related transportation costs. It is a burden to the people, so an efficient public transport system could entice them to use it and thus reduce the cost of living," he said.
Saravanan also stressed that the government must prioritise child care policy and public awareness education.
“Education is needed so the public would know how to bring down their cost of living so we need financial education. The government must continue offering subsidies to combat the country's inflation," he said.
“The government needs to continue implementing subsidies because without subsidies, our inflation will reach 12 per cent and we must look into efficient targeted subsidies to ensure that the subsidies which had significant financial implications for the government would only be enjoyed by those who really deserve it," said Saravanan.
Anwar had upon his appointment as Prime Minister last Thursday, immediately announced the reduction of costs of living as his first priority.
The Prime Minister chaired the 2022 National Action Council on Cost of Living Special Meeting on Saturday which was attended by government departments and agencies to discuss the cost of living issues affecting the people.
Anwar said the government would analyse and re-examine the subsidy distribution method for targeted subsidies and also gave the assurance that the interest of industries would continue to be given attention.
He said this was to ensure that the subsidies which had significant financial implications for the government would only be enjoyed by those who really deserved it.
