KUALA LUMPUR: The Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public Service (Cuepacs) welcomes the government’s efforts to restructure RON95 subsidies with a more targeted approach.
Its president, Datuk Dr Adnan Mat, said the targeted subsidy mechanism for RON95 petrol would ensure that assistance continued to reach those who truly need it, including the majority of civil servants in the B40 and M40 groups.
He said that in the long term, subsidy rationalisation was also crucial to strengthening the country’s fiscal position, allowing the government to channel additional allocations to critical sectors such as health, education and civil service welfare.
"As the umbrella union representing more than 1.6 million civil servants nationwide, we take seriously the implications of this policy’s implementation on the well-being of public sector workers as well as the sustainability of the national economy.
"The announcement that 85 to 90 per cent of the people will not be affected is a positive development,” he said in a statement on Monday (Sept 22).
He added that Cuepacs emphasised the importance of clear and transparent communication with the public to ensure that the implementation of the Budi95 programme was well understood and accepted.
Earlier, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the price of RON95 petrol would be reduced to RM1.99 per litre from RM2.05 per litre, effective Sept 30, through targeted subsidies under Budi95.
Based on data from the Road Transport Department and the National Registration Department, more than 16 million Malaysians are expected to benefit from the programme. – Bernama
