Tuesday, February 03, 2009
Retail purchase vouchers proposal to help low income group
NST Online » NewsBreak
2009/02/03
Retail purchase vouchers proposal to help low income group - Bernama
KUALA LUMPUR, Tues:
The government should introduce retail purchase vouchers as cash assistance for low income group of Malaysians under its second economic stimulus plan, Federation of Malaysian Consumers Association (FOMCA) secretary-general, Muhammad Shaani Abdullah, suggested today.
He said that the vouchers could be exchanged for daily basic neccessities like milk, sugar, oil and rice.
“This would help increase the spending power of consumers and also help to stimulate the retail trade,” he told Bernama here.
Last November, the government unveiled a RM7 billion economic package to help the country cope with the present economic crisis. A second package is expected to be announced soon.
Muhammad said such vouchers were also widely being used in Thailand and Taiwan.
FOMCA’s other suggestion was to increase fuel subsidy for public transport operators and cut down on fares, he added.
This, he pointed, out would help operators who were burdened with increasing operational costs and provide savings for consumers.
Muhammad felt that the proposal to increase the public transportation fares be shelved for the time being.
The mechanics to manage subsidy already in existence should be fine-tuned and with additional allocations for this sector.
The subsidy for the operators Unit of the Prime Minister’s department.
