PRIME Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob must strengthen the social protection network for the lower-income group who are vulnerable to surging inflation and increasing cost of living, said Klang MP Charles Santiago.
The DAP MP also called for reforms in the production and management of the food sector to ensure the public will be able to manage rising food costs in the face of inflation.
“In the various interviews to commemorate the first [anniversary as premier], he mentioned the need to do more for the people, especially the poor,” Santiago noted.
“This view is very welcomed, but he missed out on talking about the cost-of-living crisis that’s hitting the B60, a downgrade from the B40.
“This means that now 60% of Malaysian households would earn below RM4,850. The steep increase in price levels impacts different groups of people differently.”
According to Santiago this also exposes the vulnerabilities in the country’s food security, with lower income communities being hit the hardest as they spend about 25% of their monthly income on food, as opposed to the higher income communities who spend about 12.6% for the same purpose.
“So, what’s the next best option for them? It’s resorting to cheap but unhealthy food supplies such as instant noodles. Children are fed carbohydrates as a way of keeping their stomachs full,” he lamented.
“And unhealthy food leads to malnutrition among children and they become early candidates for diabetes and other diseases, which has been well-documented by UNICEF.”
Santiago said to help these families, the Government could consider cash transfers such as Bantuan Kehidupan Sejahtera Selangor (BINGKAS), an i-Selangor government programme to address the food burden of low-income earners.
“Here an amount of RM300 is transferred to single mothers with children below 18 years of age to ensure that poor families, especially children, have access to nutritious food,” he elaborated.
He further suggested that the Government consider a targeted breakfast scheme to overcome stunted growth and malnourishment among schoolchildren.
“While I congratulate the PM for his first year in power, I would also like to stress to him the need to put together a set of social protection efforts, with reforms in the production and management of the food sector to ensure Keluarga Malaysia will be able to manage the cost-of-living crisis,” he added. – Aug 22, 2022
