KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 3 — Deputy Finance Minister Lim Hui Ying said today the government is looking at ways to prevent misuse of subsidies for basic goods such as rice, sugar and cooking oil.
Lim told Dewan Rakyat this morning that the government plans to extend its subsidy rationalisation drive beyond energy, but stressed that any recalibration will be done carefully and in phases.
“On subsidies for sugar, rice and cooking oil, the government will study ways to rationalise subsidies on other goods as well in stages and phases,” she replied to a question from Bukit Bendera MP Syerleena Abdul Rashid (DAP).
“This move is meant to ensure we plug leakages and that the subsidies reach only those who really need them, just as we did with RON95 and diesel subsidies,” Lim added.
Previous and present administrations have spent billions of ringgit on subsidies annually to cushion the impact of inflation, but often at the expense of development spending, which economists said could have been channelled into socio-economic programmes.
Under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the government said it would commit to a subsidy rationalisation drive as it seeks to ease fiscal pressure and ensure assistance is given only to the eligible.
Since Anwar took office, the ruling coalition has rolled back subsidies for electricity, diesel and RON95 petrol, replacing them with targeted distribution.
