Harapan urges cash assistance for B40, M20 until lockdown ends

 

Pakatan Harapan has called on the government to provide cash reliefs for households in the B40 and M20 income groups throughout the lockdown period, which has been extended indefinitely.

Its cost of living committee welcomed opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim’s earlier calls to give each family in the bottom 60 percent of income earners (B60) a minimum of RM1,500 each month until the lockdown ends - but had some alterations in mind.

“We unanimously agree with Anwar who called for the provisioning of monthly assistance to the B40 group amounting to RM1,500 per household each month, throughout the lockdown.

“For the M20 category, the committee suggests giving monthly assistance of RM1,000 per household, over the lockdown period,” the committee said in a statement yesterday.

Citing reports by the Economic Action Council, the committee added that the lockdown has caused a reduction in income and a widening of income gap among people, where a portion of the M20 income group has slipped to B40 levels of income.

The statement was released after the committee held a special meeting to discuss Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s recent announcement of Covid-19 recovery package Pemulih.

Led by PKR Pasir Gudang MP Hassan Abdul Karim, the statement is also signed by its members including MPs Hasanuddin Mohd Yunus (Amanah-Hulu Langat), Chong Chieng Jen (DAP-Stampin), Natrah Ismail (PKR-Sekijang), N Sivakumar (DAP-Batu Gajah), Chan Foong Hin (DAP-Kota Kinabalu), Cha Kee Chin (DAP-Rasah) as well as state representatives Norhayati Bachok (Amanah-Maharani), and Asmirul Anuar Aris (Amanah-Kubang Rotan).

Among other things, the committee also welcomed the decision by the government to increase each parliament constituency’s food basket aid allocation from RM100,000 to RM300,000.

However, it urged the government to speed up distribution to avoid similar incidents in the past.

During the movement control order (MCO) in April this year, the government was criticised by opposition MPs on the delay in the distribution of food baskets aid.

In its statement, the committee also called on state governments to provide allocations to all their representatives fairly and justly during the pandemic, saying the spirit of federalism and democracy needs to be upheld.

It also agreed that the government should provide automatic loan moratorium, without interest, to all people.

“The Finance Ministry and corporations must realise that this is a social obligation that must be fulfilled for the sake of the rakyat’s well-being,” the committee said.

On Tuesday, Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz said the six-month moratorium on bank loans announced by Putrajaya earlier would not be interest-free.

However, Zafrul said he has asked banks to waive compounded interest and late penalty fees. - Mkini