A SUPPOSEDLY pro-Pakatan Harapan (PH) keyboard warrior has recently snubbed owners of 4×4 pick-up trucks that they should brace themselves for “life after the diesel subsidy has been lifted”.
Hinting that the owners are a wealthy lot, hence do not deserve diesel subsidy which in Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s contention could save the government of the day RM4 bil annually, Faris Ibrahim (@abahlubna) posted on the X platform:
“Be tough owners of (Toyota) Hilux, (Nissan) Navarra, (Mitsubishi) Triton and other similar class (perhaps can include Isuzu D-Max) when there is no longer diesel subsidy … Not forgetting the owners of Kia Carnival 🤣.
Bertabahlah la owner2 Hilux,Navarra,Triton dan seangkatan dgnnya bila dah xde subsidi diesel
Tak lupa juga pada owner2 Kia Karnival 🤣
Majority yg dah kereta2 ni biasanya businessman / contractor
Madani,my govt. Always the first who have the guts to do an unpopular opinion…
— Faris Ibrahim (@abahlubna) May 21, 2024
“The majority who own those cars are usually businessmen/contractors. My Madani government is always the first with the guts to make an unpopular decision. There are still two to three more years for us to paddle together.”
But then, the influencer did acknowledge that prices of goods and services are bound to spike as businessmen are likely to transfer the additional cost to consumers to offset declining profit or from incurring losses.
As to roughly how much the so-called free float diesel will cost, Anwar who is also the Finance Minister had during the tabling of Budget 2024 last October provided an indication of what users of unsubsidised diesel could expect to pay for the fuel when subsidies are removed.
As it is, the current subsidised diesel price which is set at RM2.15/litre was actually RM3.75/ litre at market price, hence the government is bearing RM1.60 for each litre of diesel sold.
For the uninitiated, Anwar had in his address to the nation on Tuesday (May 21) said the Cabinet has agreed to commence its fuel rationalising exercise with targeted diesel subsidies in the peninsula first before extending it to East Malaysia on a later date given almost all families in Sabah and Sarawak rely on diesel for their daily transportation.
The Subsidised Diesel Control System (SKDS) will include 10 types of public transport vehicles and 23 types of logistical vehicles, including bus and taxi operators.
On this note, Anwar had also laid down several measures to ensure that the move will not result in an abrupt rise in the prices of goods and services. Nevertheless, he did not indicate when the subsidy rationalisation exercise would be implemented.
While the move will save the government money, it could potentially affect sales of diesel-powered pick-up trucks, according to the Federation of Motor and Credit Companies Association of Malaysia (FMCCAM).
FMCCAM president Datuk Tony Khor said this was due to the higher cost that would be incurred by consumers and companies using pick-up trucks to deliver business supplies.
“Definitely, the pick-up business will be affected. People are now buying pick-up vehicles because diesel is cheap but if a higher cost is inflicted, their business is definitely going to be affected,” he told the New Straits Times.
As such, Khor stressed the urgency for the government to clarify aspects of the implementation of the targeted subsidies and the groups set to receive the subsidies.
This is considering that small businesses that used pick-up trucks to transport items would also be affected given that most of their vehicles were registered under private use and not included in the two groups set to receive subsidies, namely goods transport and logistics companies. – May 25, 2024
Main image credit: Carlist.my via YouTube
