Budi Diesel to start on July 1 with 700,000 vehicle owners expected to benefit

 

PETALING JAYA: Eligible private diesel vehicle owners will be able to purchase subsidised diesel at RM2.10 per litre starting tomorrow (July 1), down from the current price of RM3.97 per litre, says the Finance Ministry.

This rollout under the Budi Madani Diesel (Budi Diesel) is expected to benefit around 400,000 private diesel vehicle owners in Peninsular Malaysia, as well as 300,000 more in Sabah, Sarawak and the Federal Territory of Labuan, according to the ministry’s statement on June 30 (Monday).

“Additionally, around 70,000 commercial and goods transport vehicles in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan are now eligible to purchase subsidised diesel at RM2.15 per litre under the Subsidised Diesel Control System (SKDS),” said the ministry.

Since diesel vehicle owners need to use MyKad to benefit from this, the ministry noted the verification system at petrol stations has functioned well, with no major issues reported by subsidy recipients or oil companies, since their early testing on June 27.

The ministry also added that eligible owners of diesel-powered pickup trucks and SUVs may also apply for an additional 100 litres per month through the official Budi Madani portal, subject to the prescribed conditions.

“As of 9am on Tuesday (June 30), more than 22,000 applications had been received through the portal for the additional monthly allocation.

Separately, the government has also acknowledged that some diesel vehicles are registered under the names of close family members despite being used by another individual.

Concerning the fuel eligibility, the Finance Ministry introduced a mechanism allowing Budi Diesel eligibility to be transferred for vehicles used by close family members who are different from the registered owner.

“Under this mechanism, the original Budi Diesel recipient may transfer the subsidised diesel purchasing entitlement to one close family member, who can be a spouse, parent, child, or sibling,” said the ministry.

“As of 9am on today (June 30), nearly 1,000 applications for the transfer of this scheme had been received by the ministry.

The ministry noted that the transfer is allowed only once and may only be made to one recipient.

Once approved, the recipient may use their own MyKad to purchase subsidised diesel fuel.

However the original owner’s Budi Diesel entitlement will be deducted.

Additionally, for diesel vehicle transfer ownership, the Road Transport Department (JPJ) will waive the vehicle ownership transfer fee for three months, beginning July 1 (tomorrow),said the ministry, adding that currently the fee goes up to RM100.

“To facilitate the process, JPJ counters will operate on weekends from July 4 to July 26, from 8am to 5pm, at all State JPJ offices and State JPJ Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) offices.

Private diesel vehicle owners may check their eligibility status, monthly quota and other information through the official Budi Madani portal. - Star

Licence renewal: Commercial drivers must do health screening; army probing explosion

 

Road safety

• Drivers seeking to renew their vocational licences must now undergo a comprehensive health screening under the Healthy and Safe Driver Programme at 500 panel clinics nationwide.

  Human Resources Minister R Ramanan said the screening covers physical examinations, vision and hearing tests, screening for sleep disorders, assessments of key bodily functions, among others. 

  The screening is not intended to inconvenience drivers but to detect health problems early and be treated, he added. 

  

  Human Resources Minister R Ramanan

  "Under this initiative, drivers only need to pay RM30 for the health screening; the remaining RM55 is covered by the Madani government through Socso," he was quoted as saying by Bernama.

Weapon explosion

• The army has convened an inquiry board to investigate a weapon explosion that injured two personnel during a combat enhancement exercise at the Hobart Camp firing range in Gurun, Kedah, yesterday.

  Bernama reported the army as saying in a statement today that, during the 6.15pm incident, Firdaus Che Shaharudin and Felix Franchis from the 4th Battalion of the Royal Ranger Regiment sustained leg injuries caused by shrapnel.

  The firing range has been temporarily closed to facilitate the investigation.

  The incident occurred during a live-fire drill when the soldiers’ weapons experienced a stoppage and failed to fire.

  Firdaus has been discharged after outpatient treatment, while Felix was transferred to Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital in Sungai Petani for further treatment. - Mkini

MIC steps out of comfort zone with urban push in Johor polls

 

JOHOR POLLS | MIC is charting its own strategy by stepping out of its comfort zone to challenge Pakatan Harapan's influence in the Johor state election.

Previously, the BN component focused largely on rural constituencies such as Kahang and Kemelah.

However, MIC has now taken a bold step by fielding a candidate in the Perling state seat, widely regarded as a Harapan bastion.

Johor MIC chairperson K Raven Kumar said the decision to relinquish the Tenggaroh state seat in exchange for Perling was a tactical move to make inroads into urban areas with a significant Indian voter population.

“Strategically, MIC wants to contest in more urban seats to better serve the community, particularly Indians," he told Malaysiakini.

Raven added that Tenggaroh, which he won in the 2022 state election before vacating the seat, had been handed over to Umno in the swap for Perling.

He had secured Tenggaroh with a 1,356-vote majority before moving to contest Kemelah, where he replaces his party colleague N Saraswati, who won the seat with a majority of 1,611 votes.

Johor MIC chairperson K Raven Kumar (centre)

Explaining his decision to contest Kemelah, Raven said the move was particularly meaningful as the constituency is where he was born and raised.

His parents are also from the area, which he said made him the most strategically suitable candidate to secure victory.

Eye on Perling

According to Raven, MCA is the BN party that traditionally contests Perling.

Perling has become the focal point of MIC’s urban shift. The seat will see a three-cornered fight between BN candidate Pannir Selvam, Harapan's Alan Tee, and Parti Bersama Malaysia’s Boo Wei Han.

Raven acknowledged that while MIC’s decision to contest in areas near Johor Bahru was high-risk and challenging, winning Perling was not out of reach.

He added that Perling lies within a special economic corridor zone, carries significant weight, and has more than 14,000 Indian voters residing or working there.

“MIC needs to move out of its comfort zone in rural areas if it wants to be seen as the true representative of the Indian community,” he stressed.

In the previous state election, Harapan’s Liew Chin Tong won Perling with a comfortable majority of 3,347 votes, defeating BN’s Tan Hiang Kee and Perikatan Nasional’s Khoo Siaw Lee.

ADS

Raven said MIC did not want a situation similar to Johor Bahru, where many Indian voters reside, but the party contested or won no seats.

Success, he said, would depend on a well-organised party machinery capable of reaching as many voters as possible.

State polls outlook

In the 2022 state election, MIC contributed three seats; Kahang, Tenggaroh and Kemelah to BN’s two-thirds majority win, but narrowly lost Bukit Batu to Harapan by 137 votes.

BN leaders

This time around in Bukit Batu, which has 49,963 voters, MIC is expected to face a tough five-cornered contest.

The party is fielding its Johor secretary R Kumaran in an attempt to reclaim the seat from incumbent Arthur Chiong of PKR.

Also in the fray are Bersama’s G Tamili, M Premanand from Muda, and independent candidate Kamaruzaman Ali, who is contesting under the key symbol.

As for Kahang, a constituency with 29,814 voters, it is expected to remain a traditional MIC stronghold. The party has contested the seat since 2004 without defeat.

This time, MIC is fielding V Rugendran in a three-cornered fight against Harapan's Sabri Abd Kadir and PN’s Mazlan Bujang.

In the previous election, MIC's R Vidyananthan secured a comfortable four-term victory with a majority of 6,698 votes, defeating challengers from PN, Harapan and Pejuang.

Mission possible

Despite acknowledging the tough battles ahead in seats like Perling and Bukit Batu, Raven said MIC could still emerge victorious based on its strong track record in the state government.

He said that over the past four years, MIC had implemented various service-oriented initiatives for the Indian community in Johor, including issues related to Hindu burial grounds, temple and church land, as well as providing land for two Tamil schools.

“Through this service-based approach, we have done good work.

“We believe today’s voters are clear-minded and highly rational,” he added.

When asked about BN overall prospects in Johor, Raven stressed that the state’s strong economic performance is the most solid argument for voters- including nearly 296,000 Indian voters - to continue supporting the coalition.

“Johor is the state with the highest level of investment inflow and significant income growth. Many developments are underway and many houses are being built.

“Economically, things are doing well. Most people appreciate good governance,” he said. - Mkini

Activists march to Parliament demanding RCI into MACC 'corporate mafia' claims

 

A group of activists marched to Parliament today to hand over a memorandum urging the government to set up a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) to investigate “corporate mafia” allegations involving the MACC.

The group, named the #RCINOW Secretariat, formerly known as the #TangkapAzamBaki Secretariat, marched from Taman Tugu to the Parliament building, about 1.5km away.

Bersih executive director Asraf Sharafi said Malaysians have a responsibility to continue fighting corruption and to ensure national institutions are held accountable.

“We have a huge responsibility today to remind those at the top that we will fight corruption for the country’s sake,” he said during his speech at the entrance of Parliament.

Bersih executive director Asraf Sharafi

Bersih is among dozens of NGOs supporting the #RCINOW Secretariat.

The march proceeded to the beating of drums and cheers from participants before the memorandum was handed over to Pakatan Harapan MPs Wong Chen (Subang) and Zahir Hassan (Wangsa Maju), Perikatan Nasional MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal (Machang), and GRS MP Wilfred Madius Tangau (Tuaran).

Subang MP Wong Chen (far left), Wangsa Maju MP Zahir Hassan (far right), Machang MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal (fourth from left), Tuaran MP Wilfred Madius Tangau (third from right).

Previously, several DAP leaders, including national chairperson Gobind Singh Deo, called for the establishment of an RCI to investigate the “corporate mafia” allegations - claims which MACC strongly denied and described as an attempt to undermine its credibility.

The allegations were made in a Bloomberg report in February, quoting sources who claimed there was collusion between a group of businesspersons and senior MACC officials to stage corporate takeovers.

However, then-MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki said the allegations were based on unverified information and aimed at tarnishing the anti-graft agency’s credibility.

‘Opposition Anwar would’ve marched with us’

The #RCINOW Secretariat also urged the government to limit the prime minister’s power in the process of dismissing an MACC chief and to strengthen oversight of the commission through parliamentary roles such as an ombudsman.

“If Anwar were still on the opposition bench, I believe he would be with us today,” said Mandiri coordinator Wong KuKui.

Mandiri coordinator Wong KuKui

He said he still remembered Anwar’s words about wanting to catch “big sharks”.

“This is why we demand an RCI, to catch the rampant big sharks that tarnish our country’s integrity,” he said.

Meanwhile, Wong also urged the government to publicly disclose the investigation report regarding Azam’s share ownership, reportedly valued at RM14 million.

Throughout his tenure leading the MACC, Azam and the commission were mired in several controversies, including his share ownership issue and allegations regarding the “corporate mafia”.

Azam’s contract as chief commissioner was extended three times before his service ended on May 12.

In February, he filed a RM100 million defamation suit against Bloomberg over the report on his shareholdings. - Mkini