Selangor exco's low-price ploy is a costly political interruption

 

Can anyone decide what rate of profits would be deemed fair and what would be profiteering?

A glass of coffee costs RM1.50 at the stalls, RM3.50 in a kopitiam or an Indian-Muslim restaurant, RM14 when served in a paper cup at one of the coffee chains, and RM25 in a five-star hotel.

Charging RM45 for a simple roti canai with dhal curry in a five star hotel is profiteering, plain and simple, but is acceptable by patrons, although the ingredients and preparation are identical, and consumers are burdened with inflated prices under the guise of luxury.

In Selangor, commercial establishments are charged RM2.94 per 1,000 litres of water - meaning one litre costs a fraction of a sen (0.00294 sen, to be precise).

Restaurants serving warm or iced water use 25 cubic centimetre containers, dropping the cost per serving to a microscopic 0.000735 sen.

Yet, consumers are routinely charged 60 sen (in some places RM1 or more) for plain water or iced water.

Where is the justification? There is no justification - only the reality that consumers are charged simply because the market allows it.

Who decides the percentage of profits a trader can make? Experience has shown that this is impossible for various reasons. The mathematics of overheads further dismantles the argument for price caps.

Standardising profit margins has proven, time and again, to be an unworkable policy. There is no law - written or otherwise - that compels the uniform pricing of goods or services.

Successive governments have wisely refrained from interfering in the free market, allowing supply and demand to dictate prices.

Except for a handful of essential goods (sugar, cooking oil, flour, etc), prices remain unregulated. (During festive seasons, a dozen other items go on the list.) Teh tarik and black tea have never made that list.

The principle is simple - the consumer decides. If you want to drink your tea in a conducive environment where you want to be noticed by the Joneses, or pretend to be in the class of “nouveau riche” (those who became rich recently), be prepared to pay the price.

But if price is a factor, by all means pull up a stool and sit under the withering sun at the stall.

Selangor govt’s pledge

According to a report by The Star two days ago, the Selangor government said that local councils will be tasked with ensuring food court traders maintain reasonable prices, justified by the financial support already given to them.

“Local authorities will be directed to monitor food court operators and traders renting premises under council management, with a focus on pricing practices and compliance with existing regulations,” state Local Government and Tourism exco Ng Suee Lim said at a press conference on the sidelines of the Selangor state assembly sitting in Shah Alam last week.

Yes, anyone can monitor prices, but what action can be taken against those who increase prices?

Ng Suee Lim

The trader can charge what he likes if he complies with the requirement that the consumer knows the price he must pay. Hence, a price tag or a list of prices (including restaurant menus) will suffice.

So, Ng’s charade of “stop the price increases” must stop. It is best left to the adage “caveat emptor” - let the buyer beware.

Ng said the state’s order was not intended to impose price controls but rather to encourage ethical business practices and prevent excessive profiteering, particularly in premises that benefit from public support and subsidised facilities.

“If operating costs are reduced through government assistance, they should keep prices under control and, where possible, offer more affordable prices to attract customers,” Ng said when winding up the debate at the assembly.

Then again, who and what defines “excessive profiteering”?

Does state govt have the power?

While councils can issue summonses for littering or hygiene breaches, only gazetted officers from the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry have the statutory power to investigate and prosecute price-related offences. Council staff are legally toothless on this issue.

If Ng’s announcement is aimed at placating Selangorians over the recent boo-boos, including those planned segregation of rubbish, restrictions on non-Muslim places of worship, and the de-gazettement of forest reserve, it will not work.

But then again, who can forget Ng’s role on the issue involving the privatisation of street parking in four districts in Selangor? Didn’t he utter a series of fibs to defend the unpopular decision before the truth emerged?

If Ng believes this announcement will placate Selangorians, he is gravely mistaken. The rakyat have not forgotten the past debacles.

This sudden concern over prices feels less like economic policy and more like a desperate attempt at damage control to distract from a sinking credibility scorecard.

When demands for the four DAP exco members to explain their roles in approving such draconian regulations are met with resounding silence, grandstanding about food prices rings hollow.

Grandstanding not working

Ultimately, the state’s grandstanding on the so-called “excessive profiteering” is not a genuine consumer protection strategy; it is a populist distraction that undermines market confidence and insults the intelligence of the people.

In a free market, price tags and menus aren’t just labels - they are built-in safeguards. They empower consumers with the transparency they need, making regulation redundant.

By posturing over a 60 sen glass of water while remaining muted on substantive governance failures, Ng is not defending the poor; he is merely doing it for the headlines.

Selangorians are knowledgeable. They understand that a government that cannot manage parking, forestry, or religious harmony has no business dictating what a stall should charge for rice and curry.

If the exco truly wants to prevent "excessive" behaviour, it should start by curbing its own excessive appetite for populist distractions.

Because when silence falls on real issues, and noise rises on non-issues, the ballot box has a sharp way of restoring balance - and that is one price the politicians know that they cannot afford to ignore. - Mkini

---

R NADESWARAN is a veteran journalist who has previously laboured on bread-and-butter issues, price controls, and government propaganda – a deadly mix. Comments: citizen.nades22@gmail.com

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.