KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 24 — Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook today told luxury car owners to renew their road tax, after revealing that nearly RM35.7 million in arrears is owed for fewer than 10,000 vehicles.
He said that owners of luxury cars must fulfil their responsibilities the government’s new Budi95 policy provides petrol subsidies to all Malaysians with a MyKad and driving licence.
“I want to remind this group of the ultra-wealthy that they, too, have responsibilities. The government has been generous enough to extend subsidies to everyone, including those with luxury vehicles, but that comes with the responsibility of renewing their road tax,” he told a press conference here.
Figures from the Road Transport Department (JPJ) show the arrears are from five brands:
- Rolls Royce (345 vehicles, RM6,455,563.70 unpaid)
- Lamborghini (372 vehicles, RM3,761,345.40 unpaid)
- Bentley (660 vehicles, RM7,055,197.10 unpaid)
- Ferrari (675 vehicles, RM4,718,395.60 unpaid)
- Porsche (4,308 vehicles, RM13,751,078.20 unpaid)
“In total, just these five types of cars amount to RM35.7 million in arrears,” Loke said.
He said some luxury car owners were deliberately delaying payment, with records showing vehicles as new as one or two years old going without road tax renewal for six months to more than a year.
He added that some motorists even waited until their cars were seized, as they considered the RM300 compound “worth it”.
“There was even a celebrity who was caught. The enforcement director was on the ground at the time, and the person simply said he forgot. Some cases go back as far as three years,” he said.
Loke warned that if the practice continued, the government would be forced to take more drastic action but stressed that, for now, this was only a reminder.
He said JPJ has started “Ops Luxury”, an ongoing enforcement drive to seize any luxury car on the road without valid road tax or insurance.
“We have all the names and details, but I will not reveal them. Among the owners are Tan Sris, politicians, businessmen and other well-known individuals. If this continues, we will take more drastic measures,” he said.
