LABUAN: Labuan Consumer Movement Council chairperson Hajah Fauziah Datuk Mohd Din yesterday announced that the 50 per cent subsidy provided for commercial lorries (Menumbok-Labuan) may cease immediately.
Hajag Fauziah said that according to a study made by the Consumerism, Co-operatives and Domestic Trade Ministry (KPDNKK) in Labuan, they had found out that the subsidy is not making any impact towards reducing the prices of goods here.
“The outcome from our recent meeting between the KPDNKK and the council was that the subsidised ferry tickets worth RM17 million for commercial lorries to bring goods here should be allocated for other subsidies that might bring more benefit to the people of Labuan,” she said.
Hajah Fauziah also agreed with the proposal by the chambers of commerce here to set up a consortium to tackle the issue of expensive goods in Labuan.
It was proposed that a warehouse be rented in Kuala Lumpur so that goods bought in bulk can be shipped directly to Labuan with cheaper cost of transportation.
“The subsidy worth RM17 million will either be used to pay for the warehouse rent or for the shipping of goods. The subsidy might even be used to cover for both expenses.
“This is a far better alternative compared to subsidies for commercial lorries. The prices of goods here is still increasing, with some surging to almost 50 per cent, especially at eateries.
“The cost of living in Labuan is high and it is only getting higher,” she said.
Meanwhile, Hajah Fauziah said that the council will be holding a meeting with wholesalers for raw foods to identify other possible reasons for the increase in prices of goods here.
Furthermore, the council will distribute a list of eateries here offering reasonable prices at their outlets to promote their premises, she said.
“We will discuss with the restaurants on how to make their premises more popular among consumers,” Hajah Fauziah said.
On the other hand, she criticised the Labuan Water Supply Department for its alleged incompetence in dealing with the water shortage here where the problem was expected to only last a week here in the duty-free island.
“I cannot tolerate the department’s incompetence in dealing with this issue, as they do not even have an emergency plan to face a problem like this,” Hajah Fauziah said.
Earlier, the department had issued a notice informing the public about the shortage of water supply here for a week, starting from June 18 till June 27.
The department identified the cause of the problem as failure of the clean water pump at the treated water plant located in Kampung Lawa Gadang, Beaufort.
According to the notice, the main challenge for the department was to get spare parts for the broken pump.
“If we had an emergency plan here then, should the problem occur at Beaufort, we here would not have been affected by it as we would have ample water supply in reserve to cater to the people’s needs here for a month.
“Labuan is a small place and yet, the department did not have any emergency plan to face a situation like this.
“This island, as a federal territory, should be prioritised like other federal territories such as Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya. Labuan should have allocation for an emergency plan,” she said.
Hajah Fauziah recalled that water shortage occurred quite often here and it was time for the relevant authority to act upon this problem.