PETALING JAYA: To strengthen the Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (Sara) programme’s impact, recipients are urging a longer redemption time frame and a major expansion of the essential goods allowed under next February’s disbursement.
Many say they are holding back on using the aid because the short deadline and narrow list of eligible items made it difficult to plan purchases properly.
For many recipients, the current time frame and list of items remain major concerns.
Single mother Laila Hanum Abdul Aziz, 36, said she had yet to use the full RM100 allocation as she needed to plan her purchases carefully and did not want to spend the entire amount at one go.
“It really feels like I’m constantly rushing. Everyone seems to be going at the same time, and the shops get crowded.
“I work the night shift, so it’s difficult for me to go out and buy groceries. If possible, the usage period should be longer,” she said.
Laila suggests extending the redemption period to two or three months to accommodate those with irregular hours and those who live far from participating supermarkets.
She also hopes for additional categories such as baby diapers and formula milk, which are expensive but currently excluded.
Retired HR manager Rokiah Ayub, 74, also said she had yet to fully redeem her aid as the items she needs are not included and some products were out of stock.
She said the short deadline caused her anxiety, especially as it was challenging for her to move quickly, browse for items and stand in long queues.
“Right now everyone rushes in the same week and the supermarkets become packed. When there are too many people, we end up queuing for a very long time,” she said.
Rokiah hopes the second round will include fresh items such as chicken, vegetables and other raw produce.
“Instead of instant noodles and canned sardines, which are not healthy, it would be better if we could buy fresh ingredients,” she said.
Part-time stationery shop worker and university student Iqbal Mohd Mansor, 22, said he had used only a small portion of the aid as he lives far from participating supermarkets.
“It’s not that I don’t want to use it but travelling there already costs money, so I’m waiting until I really need the items,” he said.
Iqbal felt some pressure to redeem the aid before the deadline but did not want to spend merely to finish it.
“It would help if we could use it at smaller grocery stores. Many rural areas don’t have big supermarkets.
“If it can be used in regular shops, more people will benefit. I also hope fresh produce can be included,” Iqbal added.
University student Jordan Tan, 24, intends to redeem the remainder of his allocation soon, having only bought eggs and detergent so far.
“I think a lot of people will only rush to use it once there’s a reminder that the deadline is near, so I expect shops to get crowded closer to Dec 31,” he said.
Tan said he was frustrated that many essential raw groceries, such as chicken and potatoes, are not included in the programme.
“You can only buy items that come with packaging, which doesn’t really help when you’re trying to buy basics to cook at home,” he said, adding that RM100 offered only short-term relief.
“With clearer guidelines and more flexibility, the aid would really help,” he added.
With the Dec 31 deadline approaching, many Malaysians are still holding on to their RM100 Sara aid as confusion over eligible items and technical issues continue to discourage redemption.
Operations manager Sandra Khoo, 28, who also has not used her allocation, said she had not observed any noticeable increase in redemptions.
“I have not seen more people using the Sara aid than normal,” she said.
She added that Internet-related problems remain a significant barrier.
“Technical issues are very common, especially when checking the eligibility of items, and the lack of clarity on what products are included and what are not makes it difficult for people to plan their purchases,” she said, adding that “the app wasn’t very helpful”.
