The government has synchronised data from the national registration department (JPN) with the finance ministry to curb the misuse of MyKads in subsidy claims under the Budi Madani RON95 (BUDI95) programme.
Home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said his ministry had detected more than 100 cases where lost identity cards, reported to JPN, were still being used to redeem aid under the Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (SARA) scheme.
He said the problem arose because the JPN system and that of the finance ministry were not synchronised at the time, meaning that identity cards deactivated in the department’s database could still be used in other systems.
“When someone reports a lost MyKad, JPN immediately deactivates it.
“But because the SARA system managed by the finance ministry did not receive the update in real time, those cards remained active there and were open to misuse,” he told a press conference at JPN’s headquarters here today.
He said the number of cases was small given that there were over 18 million eligible recipients but that the government took a serious view of the matter.
“For me, this isn’t about the number of cases. The fact is, it happened. So corrective measures are necessary,” Saifuddin said.
He said system integration could not be arbitrarily done as it involved sensitive personal data, but that in certain cases, such as subsidies, real-time synchronisation was critical.
“Going forward, any MyKad deactivated in JPN’s system after being reported as lost will automatically be blocked from use in the finance ministry’s system, including for claiming BUDI95 petrol subsidies.
“What happened before serves as a lesson. For BUDI95, we cannot afford to repeat the same mistakes. Deactivated cards can no longer be used, whether for SARA or petrol subsidies,” he said.
Curbing ‘lending’ and ‘selling’ of MyKads for subsidised fuel
On concerns that Malaysians might “lend” or “sell” their MyKads to non-citizens to claim subsidised petrol, Saifuddin said the government had anticipated such risks and was ready with preventive measures.
“We cannot rule out the possibility. But as a matter of policy, we make sure that the system runs smoothly from day one, while continuing to make improvements over time,” he said.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced yesterday that the RON95 petrol price would be reduced to RM1.99 per litre starting Sept 30 under the BUDI95 programme.
Citizens aged 16 and above with an active driving licence are eligible for the subsidised rate, with verification done via MyKad – the same mechanism used for the distribution of SARA aid.
Each Malaysian is entitled to 300 litres of subsidised RON95 petrol per month, although e-hailing services are exempted from this limit.
Under the new system, non-citizens and ineligible individuals will have to pay the unsubsidised market rate of around RM2.60 per litre – higher than the current retail price of RM2.05.
