YOU pump the same amount of petrol each and every time. Use the same routes daily with little or no variations in traffic conditions. Yet, you find the petrol warning light flashing earlier than usual on certain days.
What gives?
Well, wonder no more as a video uploaded by the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry (KPDN) purportedly shows how certain petrol stations fleece motorists by tampering with the petrol pumps to actually fill less than the paid amount.
Cara stesen minyak menipu……
Video: KPDN Perak pic.twitter.com/myMXeOq9oi
— MYNEWSHUB (@mynewshub) February 4, 2025
The officer in the clip shows how the internals of the pump has been tampered with. With the aid of volume measuring equipment, it shows a pump dispensing less than what it should.
He went on to urge motorists suspecting that they are being shortchanged in such a manner, to immediately report the matter to the authorities. The errant petrol station owners would be charged under the Weights and Measures Act 1972.
Needless to say, the post shared by MYNEWSHUB (@mynewshub) was met with disdain from motorists who wondered aloud if such unscrupulous petrol station owners should have the book thrown at them.
Let the fine run into the millions to teach them a lesson, one netizen proclaimed.
Some demanded to know which station was this so they could boycott this station.
One netizen commended KPDN for uploading this educational video to create better awareness among consumers.
However, some were less than impressed that action would only be taken if a complaint is made, insinuating that perhaps spot checks should be regularly carried out to protect consumers.
More than a few jokingly commented that it was good that the cashier and surroundings of the station was blurred out, otherwise people would be able to identify which brand or the petrol kiosk location for the matter.
Quite a few also questioned why the cashier was being interrogated and treated like a criminal when it is obviously the owner of the petrol station who has to answer for this crime.
Couple this with the on-going problem of petrol stations allowing foreign-registered vehicles to buy subsidised fuel, the clip highlights the incredible greed of these petrol station owners.
Perhaps, as suggested by many netizens, it is time to have the full brunt of the law on these errant fuel station owners, otherwise it is the rakyat who will continue to foot the bill for all these unscrupulous practices.
Enforcement on both issues is not difficult. For the sale of subsidised fuel to foreigners, it is as simple as producing a Malaysian IC when filling up.
As for these fiddled with pumps, regular checks and a stint behind bars should do the trick. – Feb 6, 2025
