‘300,000 families affected if ST15 subsidy suspended’

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PUTRAJAYA: The temporary suspension of the Super Tempatan (ST) 15 rice subsidy programme as proposed by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will affect more than 300,000 families and 15,000 grocers nationwide, says Bumiputera Rice Association of Malaysia (Barim) president Ismail Awang.

He said the programme should be continued, adding the association was ready to meet with the PAC to discuss the matter, including ways to improve the current system.

“PAC’s statement is not entirely true because this programme does indeed reach its target group, especially the needy in the interiors of Sabah and Sarawak,” he told reporters at a press conference here yesterday.

He said PAC should instead, sit down together with the association, Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Ministry and Padiberas Nasional Berhad to find the root cause of the problem.

Two days ago, PAC had urged the ministry to temporarily suspend the ST15 rice subsidy programme as it did not fully reach the target group.

PAC chairman Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said the rice subsidy programme could be continued when the ministry created a new standard operating procedure to ensure the target group benefited.

Commenting further, Ismail, who represented more than 200 Barim members said there was a rice regulatory committee under the ministry which monitored wholesalers.

“Wholesalers have letters of undertaking and those (wholesalers) who breach it, risk having their licences suspended.

“Wholesalers also need to provide a monthly report to the rice regulatory committee in each state or branch, in terms of where the rice is sent,” he explained.

Since the rice subsidy programme’s introduction eight years ago, the ministry received a subsidy of RM528 million for distribution to 895 rice wholesalers nationwide.

Currently, the ST15 quota for the Peninsula is 40,000 tonnes per month while Sabah and Sarawak are allocated a total of 20,000 tonnes. —Bernama