May 28, 2022 8:00 AM

Dalam meminta kerajaan terus menyalurkan bantuan kepada rakyat memerlukan, Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif Fomca, Saravanan Thambirajah berkata, harga barang bukan dikawal sepenuhnya oleh kerajaan, sebaliknya bergantung kepada permintaan dan tawaran.

“Kerajaan telah mencuba sedaya upaya untuk menangani harga barangan berkenaan, tetapi bukan semuanya ditentukan kerajaan kerana ia tiada kuasa sepenuhnya dalam hal itu.

“Harga barangan bergantung kepada permintaan dan penawaran, kini ramai M40 dan B40 terkesan akibat kenaikan harga barangan dan kuasa membeli mereka turut berkurangan,” katanya ketika dihubungi FMT.

“Kerajaan telah mencuba sedaya upaya untuk menangani harga barangan berkenaan, tetapi bukan semuanya ditentukan kerajaan kerana ia tiada kuasa sepenuhnya dalam hal itu.

“Harga barangan bergantung kepada permintaan dan penawaran, kini ramai M40 dan B40 terkesan akibat kenaikan harga barangan dan kuasa membeli mereka turut berkurangan,” katanya ketika dihubungi FMT.

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The Federation of Malaysian Consumer Association (Fomca) said this will impact the affordability of premiums for policyholders.

“Notices are being sent to policy holders at the time when consumers are still struggling to make ends meet which is very unjust and unfair,” its president Datuk Dr Marimuthu Nadason (pix) said in a statement today.

“Fomca advocates for the deferment of repricing rollout by insurance companies which was initially intended to take effect in 2020. However, due to the severe economic disruption caused by the pandemic, the one-year postponement does not provide enough breathing space for policyholders who remain burdened by economic and employment uncertainties.”

Marimuthu said hospital occupancy has decreased tremendously due to the Covid-19, thus insurance companies will have a lesser pay out compared to previous years.

“It was also reported by the Association of Private Hospitals that private hospitals and clinics have seen a drop of almost 70%, thus resulting in a healthier loss/claims ratio as well as improved overall profitability for insurers,” he said.

“Besides that, with many losing jobs and taking pay cuts, it is both an emotional and financial stress for policy holders keep up with the current premiums, what more if the insurance industry goes ahead with the repricing exercise we fear that many policies would be surrendered or lapse due to premium increase.”

They are Johor (11.3%), Sabah (8.3%), Perlis (7.1%), Selangor (1.5%), Kelantan (-0.25) and Kedah (-2.3%).

“Through the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) which acts as the regulatory body of the national water services industry, KASA has set the key performance indicators of treated water margin reserves that need to be complied with and achieved by all state water operators at 10 to 15%, ” he told the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.

Ahmad Masrizal was responding to a question from Datuk Ahmad Nazlan Idris (BN-Jerantut) on the ministry’s initiative to address the low treated water reserve margin in the country and plans to increase water sources.

For Selangor, he said the completion of the Langat 2 Plant in 2023 would increase the treated water margin reserve to 10%.

For Kelantan, he said completion of the water treatment plant in Kg Teluk, scheduled next year, would increase the water margin reserve to 4%.

“For Kedah, five plants, for which tenders have been approved, are expected to be completed in 2023 and they will increase the water reserve margin to 21%, ” he said.

On the treated water margin reserve for the whole country, Ahmad Masrizal said: “It is at 11.5% or 1.943 million litres per day as of the second quarter of this year.”

Monday, 16 Nov 2020

A botched liposuction from an unlicensed beauty salon allegedly led to Coco Siew’s untimely death last month (October).

The beauty industry reeled from the news, calling on authorities to take stiffer action against unregistered practitioners to prevent another tragedy.

So far, the National Consumer Complaints Centre (NCCC) received 420 complaints this year involving the wellness and aesthetic industry, with most being about refunds.

“Only a handful are involving health-related incidents, ” NCCC senior manager S. Baskaran tells Sunday Star.

In 2018, the NCCC received 1,771 complaints involving the beauty sector, with most disputes on refunds (19.2%), poor service (9.9%) and misleading information (9.3%).

“Some 6.8% of complaints were about health complications with some suffering side effects like irregular heartbeat or headache from slimming drinks or other services, ” he says.

Over 1,520 complaints on the sale of goods online through social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram were received by the National Consumer Complaints Centre (NCCC) over the past 10 months.

“Many have complained that their purchased goods never reached them, ” NCCC senior manager S. Baskaran told The Star Tuesday (Nov 10).

He said the NCCC wanted to warn consumers before the annual online sale begins at 12.01am Wednesday (Nov 11).

“Online shoppers need to be wary each time they buy from online platforms, especially social media.

“Some scammers will disguise themselves as authentic sellers and use the 11.11 sale as their platform to trick more gullible consumers.

“Consumers need to verify if the seller is genuine first. Don’t be an easy prey, ” Baskaran added.

Wednesday, 11 Nov 2020

Fomca (Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations) has long advocated for this Act to enhance consumer protection in the financial sector.

After the Act is formulated, it is hoped that it would be enforced by Bank Negara Malaysia and the Securities Commission.

Three credit forms that are of great concern to Fomca are hire purchase, money lending and pawn shops. The Hire Purchase Act is under the jurisdiction of the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry while the Moneylenders Act and Pawnbrokers Act are both under the Housing and Local Government Ministry.

There is an urgent need to effectively regulate the interest rates and trade terms of non-bank institutions that provide credit to consumers. Very often, the interest rates are exorbitant while the contractual terms are severely unfair to consumers.

Timbalan Presiden Gabungan Persatuan-Persatuan Pengguna Malaysia (FOMCA) Mohd Yusof Abdul Rahman berkata pengeluaran itu dilihat dapat membantu memulihkan kitaran ekonomi masyarakat yang terjejas dan terhimpit.

“Pada masa sama, kerajaan masih meneruskan pengeluaran i-Lestari di Akaun 2 yang dijangka tamat pada Mac tahun hadapan. Sekurang-kurangnya, mereka (pencarum) boleh mengeluarkan sehingga RM1,000 daripada Akaun 1 dan 2 KWSP dalam meringankan beban kewangan mereka akibat wabak COVID-19,” katanya kepada Bernama.

Menteri Kewangan Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz dalam pembentangan Belanjawan 2021 semalam mengumumkan kemudahan pengeluaran Akaun 1 KWSP secara bersasar sebanyak RM500 sebulan dengan jumlah sehingga RM6,000 untuk 12 bulan.

Pada masa sama, katanya, FOMCA menyifatkan pembentangan Belanjawan 2021 sebagai menyeluruh meskipun kerajaan menghadapi pelbagai kekangan daripada segi kewangan.

“Bajet ini juga bukan sahaja mengurangkan bebanan rakyat tetapi pada masa ia bertujuan menggerakkan ekonomi negara,” katanya.

Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca) deputy president Mohd Yusof Abdul Rahman said the facility was seen as being able to help restore the economic cycle of the affected groups.

“At the same time, the government is still continuing the i-Lestari Account 2 withdrawal scheme, which is expected to end in March next year.

“They (contributors) can now withdraw up to RM1,000 from EPF Accounts 1 and 2 to relieve them of their financial burden due to the pandemic,” he told Bernama.

Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz when tabling Budget 2021 yesterday announced a targeted Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) Account 1 withdrawal facility of RM500 per month, up to a maximum of RM6,000 for 12 months.

Mohd Yusof also described Budget 2021 as being comprehensive despite the government was facing various financial constraints.

6 November 2020

Previous governments had to some extent protected patients by regulating how much doctors could charge patients, as healthcare is a right not a commodity.

However, the previous health minister decided to eliminate the price ceilings and thus there are no price controls of how much patients can be charged. Doctors could charge as they please. Patients lost their protection. Thus the protection provided by setting a ceiling on consultation charges was removed – patient’s rights were trampled.

In addition, one of the promises made was that while doctors could charge as they pleased, with no price ceiling, they would be transparent in their patient charges, clearly indicating the breakdown of charges for consultation and for each of the medicines prescribed. Each patient would then know exactly how much he is being charged for both consultation and for each medicine that he has been given.

With transparency in medication costs, the patient could then make a choice on whether he wanted to purchase from the clinic or a pharmacy. For convenience, many may choose to buy from the clinic; while other more cost conscious consumers may choose to compare prices to get the best value for money.

The most serious issue consumers face as workers is unemployment and reduction in income. According to the Social Security Organisation, 90,000 workers have lost their jobs since the crisis began.

Another study indicates that 200,000 workers in the informal sector – such as contract workers, maids and hawkers – may fall into poverty due to loss of or reduction in income. A study by a think tank indicates that more than two million may lose their jobs eventually.

Thus the government’s priority should be to facilitate a rapid economic recovery, ensure job creation to absorb both those who have lost their jobs as well as new entrants into the job market. It is estimated that at least one million well-paying jobs need to be created to do this.

For those who have lost their jobs, opportunities for training and upskilling need to be made available. For those struggling to get new jobs, the government needs to provide direct financial support for a time to ensure that they can maintain a minimum quality of life. In fact, it is high time that the government established a comprehensive social safety net to ensure that everyone is assured a minimum quality of life.