Government didn’t raise petrol price, says deputy minister

According to Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan, RM2 billion was spent on the subsidy within a month, and based on research by The International Monetary Fund, 80% of it was enjoyed by the higher income group.

The government did not raise the price of petrol, and had merely reduced the subsidy, Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan told Parliament today.

“The government never hiked the petrol prices, which are determined by the global market. The government had merely reduced the subsidy,” he said in reply to a question from Shaharuddin Ismail (BN - Kangar),

“For diesel, we reduced subsidy of RM1 to RM0.80, while for RON95 we reduced RM0.83 to RM0.63. Petrol prices are determined by the global market,” he said.

He added the government reduced the subsidy as the majority who benefited from it were from the higher income group and foreigners.

According to Ahmad, RM2 billion was spent on the subsidy within a month, and based on research by The International Monetary Fund, 80% of it was enjoyed by the higher income group.

“The current subsidy structure was enjoyed by the rich and foreigners, who use high-powered vehicles compared with those who use smaller cars and motorcycles,” he said.

He also said Putrajaya must restructure its subsidy plan to ensure that the targeted group would benefit from the subsidy

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