Monday, November 24, 2008
Send message of prudence in petrol price floor of RM3, says Fomca
2008/11/24
Send message of prudence in petrol price floor of RM3, says Fomca
KUALA LUMPUR: RM3 as the retail floor price for a litre of petrol is what the Federation of Malaysian Consumer Associations (Fomca) would like to see.Sha'ani said a floor price of RM1.92 per litre was too low to regulate the price of petrol. That was the price at the pump before the meteoric hike in price by 78 sen on July 1.
"Continued reductions in pump prices will only benefit those who drive their own vehicles but leave out low-income earners and the poor who do not own vehicles.
"At the same time, people will stop thinking about prudence in petrol use and start using their cars more, and then our roads will be jammed again."
Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad has proposed a price floor plan.
Yesterday, Shahrir gave the assurance that every detail would be considered before the government decided whether to implement a price floor plan for the pump.
He stressed that everyone must acknowledge that global oil prices were bound to go up at some point so the government would need something to fall back on.
"In the end, the money (for subsidies) has to come from somewhere.
"Even if we save the subsidy for petrol, it will still go to the consolidated fund, which in turn will be used for something else for the benefit of the people.
"Whatever the case, just wait for Dec 1 and the Economic Council will decide on it (price floor plan)."
The Consumers Association of Subang and Shah Alam (Cassa) agrees that the price floor plan is workable.
Cassa president Datuk Dr Jacob George, however, cautioned against imposing a price floor that was too far removed from the prevailing global crude oil price.
"We should not be seen as tampering with market forces because it may be viewed as Malaysians being unable to handle (the economic crisis)."
Both Sha'ani and George agreed that the crux of change lay in consumer habits.
Consumers, they said, must keep tabs on their petrol consumption and avoid waste.
The associations advised consumers to find an alternative mode of transport for their daily commute and consider at least a partial shift to public transport.
"Everyone is talking about saving 10 or 15 sen at the pump, but ultimately it is the millionaire who enjoys the low prices as this does not have much impact, if any, on the mid-income class," Sha'ani said.
He stressed that instead of pushing for lower prices of goods, the government should focus on bringing down the overall cost of the use of public amenities such as public transport, medical care and education.
Sha'ani noted that by allowing the private sector more freedom to set their own prices, it would help spur the economy and reduce the stranglehold of a handful of companies that monopolised the sale of certain goods such as sugar and flour.
George agreed that it was necessary to "get rid" of cartels and parallel importers, who he said were stifling the development of healthy competition among businesses.
"We need to promote competition which is good for everyone, and this is where we all can come together and come up with a plan which is fair and reasonable for both consumers and the business community.
"Consumers and the private sector need to compromise and this is where the government can play its part, by helping both sides come to a consensus.
"This is not the time for protests. This is the time for prudent thinking and we all need to be accountable and work according to our conscience."
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ivan: Bravo, Muhammad Sha'ani Abdullah. He gain an overnight fame. Thousands of Malaysians would remember his name for a short period. Is the FOMCA election coming soon? Lets have a simple vote. How many readers know Muhammad Sha'ani Abdullah only after today's news? Hope FOMCA could consult the respective party involve before making any further comments. Which may affect the economic stability of the country. One end of Malaysia is trying to promote more consumers spending to stimulate the economy. And the other end is trying to halt the spending. What is the 3% EPF deduction for? For consumer to spend more on petrol and the increase price of food and etc etc? Bravo again Muhammad Sha'ani Abdullah. You made FOMCA & Malaysian proud of you. Ziggy: Two things. Both persons FOMCA secretary-general Muhammad Sha'ani Abdullah and Dato Shahrir Samad should quit from their current position. The first because of his weird idea and didn't do his homework to help the rakyat. Don't know what is he trying to gain here. I think FOMCA should sack this guy first thing tomorrow morning. Such a wasted rep. for FOMCA. The latter was the one I admired when he was the govt. backbencher but then now turn two-faced after elected as Menteri KPDN. Dear Dato Shahrir, no wonder you are not elected as Menteri during DR. M era. It is because you are short sighted and blind. I pity politicians like you. HammerHead: A hugh portion of Sabah does not have any organised public transport system. Although Sabah is a hugh contributor of Oil & Gas, the govt has only just begun to look at development in the state. How do you expect people in Sabah to afford RM3/litre? What has CASH got to say about this proposal? I believe a hugh amount of sumggling will arise from such a drastic move. Recovering Malaysian: We Malaysian are trying to recover from the surge of Petrol price in reason months......now here comes a wise chap who wants to floor the price of petrol to rm3. What is going on here? The Government is trying to help the nation but some so called Consumer protection team are trying to kill the nation with the so called brilliant ideas. Emily, Seremban: Cars are getting cheaper and cheaper. It is wrong to think that only rich millionaires could own a car. I am a student myself, and I am undergoing a training in Seremban city that is 30km from my house, passing through the hill road, Bukit Putus, twice a day. At 60km a day, my Perodua MYvi, will consume me RM30-RM40 per 5 days work with current RM2/litre price. There is no special bus to go into my workplace in Senawang, Seremban. If putting a floor price at RM3/litre on a person who has not even started working and had no other choice of transportation, why not shoot all of us in the head? Not all places can be reached by using public transport, if not I wouldn't even choose to go earlier every day so that I could get a parking place. Unless Malaysia manage to build MRT from major places to another like how they did in Singapore and Hong Kong or even Japan in every state, for the moment, please don't kill us. We rather save up that RM1 so that we could get a better food during lunch hour. Penangite: What is this? An association that should be protecting the well being and welfare of the rakyat is proposing such "brilliant" idea! This is the problem when people at the top don't think before they talk. Try saying the same thing when you are making 2000 to 2500 a month and having 2 kids, paying for the house and all other stuffs. Sunny, Kuala Lumpur: Fomca Secretary General Muhammad Shaani Abdullah, should be sacked by its members for proposing such a ridiculous idea to the Government what with the economy downtrend. He has caused a lot of misery among the people and we can definitely see more crime and the spiral effect of this financial meltdown. Derrick, KL: RM3 for petrol? Is this another statement made without thinking again? What is FOMCA trying to do? Public Transportation in Malaysia is inefficient, and can barely cope with the numbers as it is, Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad should try taking the LRT during the morning and afternoon rush and see how it feels, rather than talking about trying to make money from the petrol we use he should actually try and focus on improving public transport, why should we use something that is useless. The Govt should stop trying to fool the public, try and sit down and use your brains for once, before saying anything, you should be ashamed and embarrassed with that statement... if you don't want to subsidise our fuel, then all cars should not have to pay road tax. Khim: We always thought that Fomca looked out for the interest of the CONSUMERS, and the TMNET issue was just a hiccup. Now we know. Now we all know who they represent. Not the consumers and entrepreneurs, just the mega corps...the monopolies. The secretary-general should be sacked for such ridiculous comments. Are you Shahrir Abd Samad in disguise? If you want to set the floor price at RM3 or 50% higher than current price, salary of Malaysian should be increased by 50% as well. Is the government prepared to do that??? Please don't compare our petrol price with other countries. That is not how comparision work. We should compare the petrol price against the mass purchasing power not the selected few... FOMCA, I'm starting to feel that you are becoming irrelevant to malaysians. He wants to send prudence message to the public but does he have any idea of what kind of message he will be sending to the public transport operators, food producers and retailers? High floor price will lead to high public transport fares and high food or goods prices which definitely affect everybody including the low-income earners and the poor. I hope Encik Muhammad Sha'ani uses public transport everyday in order to understand the reality! Here's my message: don't teach prudence by pressing the public more. Please fix all toll, public transport, no traffic jam and also abolish all import car tax. Then they can consider Malaysians accepting the floor price at RM3. At RM3, it will only benefit all millionaires, not us (lower income earners). A large portion of the nation are in the middle income range and a large portion of the population in Malaysia own cars. If the benefits of the resources are not enjoyed by the masses, then who should benefit from the resources? The rich or the elite who control the mining and selling of the resources? It affects the middle class and the poor!!! At RM3 the fares are going to skyrocket and the nasi lemak and roti chanais and koay teows are going to cost more. Who do you think will suffer? The millionaire??? Wake up, FOMCA!!! You think the millionaire is going to go around on kapchais? It's the poor and the average guy. When the price was RM2.70 do you see any reduction in the jams? No!!! Millionaires will still drive their Merz, BMs and Camrys and Accords. Will FOMCA put food on the table of the average Malaysian when the price of goods skyrocket with the high price of petrol??? Environment? Ban all vehicles then. Use bicycles and LRTs. We are an oil producing country and petrol price should be below MYR1 per litre instead. I work in the Middle East and price per litre here eg Saudi Arabia is around Riyal Sausi 0.43 per litre ie about 43 sen per litre. In Australia, average take home pay is around AUD2500 per month and the price of petrol is AUD1.3 Dollar for dollar, Malaysians are still being slugged with a huge tax on petrol but we are an oil producer. Connectivity to places via public transport is so BAD, that is why people like me HAVE TO USE our own private cars to work. Why can't this people THINK before saying anything. |
Keep petrol and diesal low... can buy cheap here sell expensive somewhere... good money
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