THE Budi95 subsidy scheme mechanism for e-hailing drivers is now being fine-tuned, with an announcement to be made soon, says Deputy Finance Minister Lim Hui Ying.
“This move is part of the ministry’s commitment to strengthening the implementation of the scheme, where the government will carry out improvements from time to time, including reviewing the additional qualification limits for e-hailing drivers so that it is more equitable and comprehensive,” she said.
She was replying to Abdul Latiff Abdul Rahman (PN-Kuala Krai), who asked why e-hailing drivers were allocated only 300 additional litres, bringing their total monthly quota to 600 litres compared with 1,400 litres per month for taxi drivers.
Lim explained that the disparity was because taxi drivers were paying RM2.05 per litre for RON95, which is the commercial vehicle rate rather than the subsidised RM1.99 per litre.
On Friday, The Star reported that e-hailing drivers were saying the current 600-litre monthly RON95 quota under the Budi95 scheme is insufficient to sustain their daily operations, urging the government to increase it to at least 1,000 litres.
The drivers argued that lumping it together with the additional 300 litres for e-hailing work deprives them and their families of subsidised petrol meant for personal use.
While e-hailing drivers receive an additional 300 litres of RON95 monthly, p-hailing drivers rely solely on their personal 300-litre quota, as the government has yet to announce any extra subsidised fuel for their use.
Meanwhile, Lim said the first month of implementation of the Budi95 subsidy scheme has gone smoothly, with more than 13 million people using the scheme as of the end of October.
She added that as of Oct 31, 80%, or 13.1 million, of the 16.5 million Malaysians eligible for targeted subsidies had purchased RON95 petrol at the subsidised rate of RM1.99 per litre.
This involved 1.33 billion litres of fuel, amounting to RM2.66bil.
“The system has been stable, with no complications or long queues at petrol stations.
“Consumers are getting used to Budi95.”
Lim said the government would continue to improve the system to make it more inclusive.
She noted that savings from the programme would be directed to other initiatives that benefit the people, including the Sara aid and Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah programmes.
She was responding to Chong Zhemin (PH-Kampar) on the status of the targeted RON95 petrol subsidy and how the government ensures that only low- and middle-income groups genuinely benefit from the scheme.
On the financial impact, Lim said the government could recognise the projected savings of between RM2.5bil and RM4bil, based on estimates that 22% of users were ineligible for subsidies, the removal of subsidies for foreigners and commercial users, and oil prices of US$60-US$80 per barrel.
