Think tank sounds alarm over private debt situation
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High gearing can be disastrous, especially if the economy does not grow as projected, says economist.
15 Feb 2023, 7:45am
PETALING JAYA: Housewife Agnes (not her real name) leads a fairly comfortable life.
Her husband earns just about RM5,200 a month, a stable income that affords them a house and a car.
Unfortunately, a health insurance plan is out of reach.
House and car instalment payments already wipe out more than half of their income, leaving them with just RM1,900 to pay for household essentials and to raise their toddler.
The couple are caught in the middle income trap. Their income puts them in the M40, the 40% of Malaysians who belong in the middle income group.
They are hardly rich, yet they earn just a little too much to qualify for aid directed to the B40 (the bottom 40% of income earners).
Agnes hopes the government will take their plight into account in Budget 2023 given that it is increasingly challenging to cope with the rising cost of living on wages that have not been raised for some time.
Agnes and her husband are among nearly three million Malaysian households that are especially vulnerable to the household debt trap, according to economist Carmelo Ferlito, CEO of the Center for Market Education.
Many have had to borrow to meet additional expenses resulting from rising costs and the occasional emergencies.
Read more: Think tank sounds alarm over private debt situation
CAP: Promote farming in schools
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February 11, 2023 @ 4:54pm
KUALA LUMPUR: The Consumers' Association of Penang (CAP) is calling on the Education Ministry to introduce agricultural activities to students at schools.
CAP education officer N.V. Subbarow said that school area and unused vacant lands should be utilised for organic farming.
He said that students nurtured with farming activities at school would be able to become good farmers on their own in the future which would ease the burden of their families by picking from their own farms.
"If students were taught agricultural education in schools, it would reduce the economic burden of their families in future.
"Green gardens can help B40 groups as the price of vegetables is very high. These families can save a lot of money by eating their own vegetables.
"It's time for the education ministry to emphasise farming education in schools and universities and teachers training colleges since many lands near their premises were not used for any purpose," he said in a statement to New Straits Times today.
A special programme was organised for the students of SJK(T) Pulau Carey Barat to promote agricultural activities to the students there.
About 40 teachers and 90 students from Kuala Langat district attended the natural farming training programme organised by CAP.
During the programme, Subbarow shared information on crop growth promoters and ways to make their own growth promoters with zero cost.
Preparation of vermicompost, insect repellants, importance of earthworms cultivation and cow dung utilisation method were demonstrated by him during the programme held recently.
"Based on our experience, many students and teachers are still unaware of planting vegetables. Schools can become a good and healthy centre to create more farmers.
Peniaga sambut Menu Rahmah, yakin dapat sambutan
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Januari 28, 2023 @ 6:58pm
KUALA LUMPUR: Golongan peniaga menyahut cabaran Kementerian Perdagangan Dalam Negeri dan Kos Sara Hidup (KPDN) untuk mewujudkan Menu Rahmah, sebagai langkah membantu golongan memerlukan.
Inisiatif itu juga dilihat mampu menjadi daya tarikan pengunjung ke gerai makanan dan restoran bagi mendapatkan juadah yang sesuai dengan kemampuan kewangan.
Presiden Gabungan Persatuan Penjaja dan Peniaga Malaysia, Datuk Seri Rosli Sulaiman, berkata Menu Rahmah wajar dilaksanakan kerana peniaga juga mahu membantu golongan miskin tegar.
"Menerusi Menu Rahmah, kita boleh menyediakan nasi bersama ayam, sayur dan air sirap atau nasi bersama sardin, sayur serta air sirap.
"Saya juga sudah berhubung dengan beberapa peniaga makanan popular yang memaklumkan Menu Rahmah boleh dibuat walaupun keuntungannya kecil.
"Strategi mempamerkan Menu Rahmah di kedai boleh menarik perhatian pengunjung dan pasti ramai yang memilihnya.
"Ini sama seperti di pasar raya besar yang menjual ayam pada harga murah tetapi tetap memperoleh keuntungan," katanya ketika dihubungi di sini, hari ini.
Katanya, Menu Rahmah sesuai dijual di gerai yang mempunyai ramai pelanggan bagi memastikan kos bahan mentah dapat ditampung.
Pengurus Kanan Pusat Khidmat Aduan Pengguna Nasional (NCCC), Baskaran Sithamparam, mengingatkan peniaga supaya tidak memanipulasi Menu Rahmah.
LETTER | Revamp MyCC for better consumer protection - FOMCA
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Jan 27, 2023 11:38 AM
The Federation of Malaysian Consumers Association (Fomca) fully supports Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Salahuddin Ayub for finally taking firm action to stop the abuse of consumers by Digital payments company Touch 'n Go (TNG).
Being a monopoly, TNG has always abused the welfare of consumers.
The Competition Act 2010 was established to prevent monopolistic behaviour by companies that abused their position in the market, thus causing suffering to consumers.
In relation to the abuses suffered by consumers, Fomca had filed a complaint with the Malaysian Competition Commission (MyCC) on Oct 30, 2018, against the abuses committed by TNG on consumers because of its monopolistic position.
Two years later, on Aug 28, 2020, MyCC responded that it had undertaken an investigation and, according to the results of its inquiry, “the issues raised do not raise any competition concern”. No matter how consumers are abused by TNG, the MyCC feels that it is not an issue of non-competition or the monopoly abusing its power.
There was again abuse of consumer welfare when TNG informed motorists that RFID would replace SmartTag. It sparked consumer anger and outrage. Fomca made a firm stand that consumers should be given a choice and not be forced into purchasing Radio Frequency Identification (RFID).
MyCC was silent again.
Growing complaints
Fortunately, the then prime minister made a firm announcement that consumers should be given a choice.
Read more: LETTER | Revamp MyCC for better consumer protection - FOMCA
Over 3,000 complaints from 2021-2022 received against airlines: NCCC
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08 Jan 2023 8:00AM
JOHOR BARU – The National Consumer Complaints Centre (NCCC) received 3,029 complaints against airliners from January 2020 to December 2021, according to its senior manager Baskaran Sithamparam.
The majority of the complaints, he pointed out, pertain to travellers facing obstacles in receiving refunds for cancelled flights.
During the height of the pandemic, Baskaran highlighted, travel restrictions saw travellers’ flights cancelled, with some airlines operating in Malaysia offering vouchers instead of cash refunds.
“What makes things worse is that these vouchers sometimes come with a time limit, whereby travellers must use them before the period ends.
“Furthermore, for some consumers, vouchers were not a feasible solution given that they paid for flights using their credit cards, so in such situations, cash refunds would have been best,” Baskaran told The Vibes.
Najib Redzuan is an example of a customer who purchased a flight with a low-cost carrier in early 2020, which was cancelled due to the movement control order in place at the time.
Until today, despite spending over RM5,000 on flight tickets to Japan for a family vacation, he has yet to receive proper reimbursement.
“We were planning to fly to Japan sometime in March, and when our flights were cancelled, I was told by the airline that I would get a refund within a certain time period.
“I waited a whole year until I came across the news that the airline would be pursuing a restructuring scheme, which would see customers like me receiving credits we could use to purchase another flight.
Read more: Over 3,000 complaints from 2021-2022 received against airlines: NCCC
Caj perubatan meningkat, polisi insurans dijangka naik
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Januari 6, 2023 @ 11:10am
KUALA LUMPUR: Nilai tuntutan perubatan bagi insurans dan takaful hayat dijangka meningkat tahun ini berikutan kenaikan caj hospital serta perubatan, kata Penganalisis AmInvestment Bank, Kelvin Ong.
"Sehubungan itu, kami tidak menolak kemungkinan syarikat insurans/takaful menaikkan premium/sumbangan polisi sedia ada, berkuat kuasa dan baharu bagi mencerminkan keadaan tuntutan sejak kebelakangan ini," katanya dalam satu nota penyelidikan.
Beliau berkata, perkembangan itu berbeza dengan segmen insurans am yang harganya dijangka kekal kompetitif pada tahun ini.
Katanya, ini berikutan pada 1 Oktober 2022, harga produk bagi segmen kebakaran dan motor terus diliberalisasi di bawah Fasa 2A.
"Di bawah fasa 2A, tarif bagi produk kebakaran dikurangkan sebanyak 15 peratus. Begitu juga, harga bagi produk kebakaran tanpa tarif dipinda sehingga kurang 30 peratus daripada tarif baharu. Ia menarik keluar keupayaannya untuk mengenakan caj premium sehingga 30 peratus daripada tarif kebakaran," katanya.
Sementara itu, Ong berkata fleksibiliti harga bagi segmen motor sudah dinaikkan kira-kira 15 peratus, lebih tinggi berbanding 10 peratus daripada tarif di bawah Fasa 2.
Read more: Caj perubatan meningkat, polisi insurans dijangka naik
'Payung Rahmah' to help B40, hardcore poor tackle cost of living issues
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January 8, 2023 @ 9:55am
JOHOR BARU: The Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry will be introducing the 'Payung Rahmah' initiative to reduce the cost of living for the lower-income group (B40) and hardcore poor.
Its minister, Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub said the initiative which would be announced on Tuesday, is the result of the cooperation with several ministries including the Economy Ministry, and the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry.
"The details will be announced on Tuesday and the concept of Payung Rahmah is the focus of our ministry as well as its short-term strategy for the first six months.
"It will touch on the B40 and hardcore poor who may be hard hit if we don't deal with it carefully and with focus because I fear the global economic situation is expected to be serious this year and will give greater impact on them," he told reporters after the Pulai Parliamentary Personnel Feast here last night.
The Pulai Member of Parliament said the initiative included giving food baskets, Rahmah Kasih Sayang Cheap Sale and Cafe Rahmah for university students.
"We will provide food baskets and hold Rahmah Kasih Sayang Cheap Sales which will have a package of 10 items, while for university students, aid is through Cafe Rahmah," he said.
Meanwhile, regarding the Chinese New Year celebration, Salahuddin said the ministry will be announcing a price control scheme next week.
When asked if there was a possibility that face masks would be placed as a controlled item following the opening of China's border, he said it had not been decided so far.
Read more: 'Payung Rahmah' to help B40, hardcore poor tackle cost of living issues
Are consumers really to blame for high food prices?
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5 Jan 2023 4:00PM
ECONOMIC Affairs Minister Rafizi Ramli believes consumers are to blame for high food prices because they continue to purchase essentials although prices have gone up. He would suggest, for example, that if chicken prices go up, people should stop eating chicken.
According to the Malaysia Economic Monitor Report published by the World Bank in 2019, it was reported that 30% of Malaysians felt they did not have enough money for food. The number of Malaysians who felt that they did not have enough money for food had doubled since 2012.
In a study by Universiti Putra Malaysia on young workers in public housing areas, 48.9% reported that they needed to borrow to buy basic food items, 61.1% reported not having enough money for medicines and 89% made late bill payments.
In a more recent report, it has been stated that post-pandemic, 20% of M40 have fallen into the B40 category.
In the World Bank Report, it has clearly reported that between 2012 and 2018 both rural and urban Malaysians have felt growing hardship in their life conditions. In the simplest terms, honourable minister, consumers are suffering from low incomes and high prices. Not because they are choosing to patronise expensive options to fulfil their hunger and their needs.
Despite Federation of Malaysian Consumers Association’s (Fomca) continuous advocacy for food security, we continue to under-invest in food production, whereby our self-sufficiency is too low to meet demands for basic foods. More than RM50 billion is spent on importing food, resulting in high volatility of food prices, like now as our ringgit falls.
Read more: Are consumers really to blame for high food prices?
Tackling cost of living agenda holistically
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21 Dec 2022 10:59AM
THE Federation of Malaysian Consumers Association (Fomca) would like to express its gratitude to the prime minister for ensuring no increase in electricity tariffs and efforts to address chicken and egg shortages.
Beyond these, what is needed is a holistic approach to the cost of living agenda. It encompasses issues of income and social protection, food availability and affordability, affordable housing, reliable public transport, accessible healthcare, affordable childcare services, and affordable internet services. It must also include the empowerment of consumers. Next, to ensure that the efforts and actions taken are actually having a positive impact on the people, we need to monitor their perceptions and their subjective wellbeing. Finally, we need to find a new way to move forward to ensure the effective implementation and monitoring of policies and programmes.
Income and social protection
Incomes in Malaysia are low. The living wage as proposed by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is RM2,600 for a single adult. Yet, according to a World Bank Report in 2018, six million workers in Malaysia earned less than RM2,160. That was before the pandemic. Currently it has been reported that due to job loss and fall in income levels, coupled with the significant rise in cost of living, 20% of M40 have fallen into the B40 group.
Many Malaysians, especially in urban areas, feel their income is insufficient to raise their living standards. As at 2018, nearly 30% of Malaysians felt they did not have enough money for food and 23% reported they did not have adequate money for shelter. According to BNM, cost of living has been increasing across all households, but more significantly for lower income households in urbanised states.
TAHNIAH DATUK SERI ANWAR IBRAHIM PM-10
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Tahniah diucapkan kepada Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim yang dilantik sebagai Perdana Menteri Ke-10.
#AnwarIbrahim
#PM10
#hakpengguna
#tanganikossarahidup
#FOMCA
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