SANDAKAN: Sabah elected representatives have been urged to channel proposals to improve the targeted diesel subsidy programme through a state-level committee for formal consideration by the Finance Ministry.
Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali said several representatives in Sandakan had proposed aligning the eligibility requirements for individual assistance under Budi Diesel with those for the Budi95 petrol subsidy.
He said the proposal reflected feedback received from the grassroots following the expansion of targeted diesel subsidies to Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan on July 1.
Armizan said the concerns did not involve commercial vehicles, which fall under the purview of his ministry.
"I have therefore asked them to channel the proposal to Sabah State Secretary Datuk Zainudin Aman, as a coordination platform is now in place between the Sabah and Sarawak governments and the federal Finance Ministry," Armizan said here on Sunday (July 26).
Zainudin chairs the state-level committee established to coordinate issues arising from the implementation of the targeted diesel subsidy programme in Sabah.
Armizan said the proposal had been raised by elected representatives including Datuk Samad Jambri, Datuk Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan, Vivian Wong, Datuk Hazem Mubarak Musa and Mohd Ismail Ayob.
He explained that individual assistance under Budi Diesel and Budi Agri-Komoditi was administered by the Finance Ministry.
His ministry, meanwhile, is responsible for regulating subsidised diesel supplied to commercial vehicles through the Subsidised Diesel Control System, or SKDS.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor had earlier said the Sabah government was engaging with the Finance Ministry and relevant federal agencies to refine the implementation mechanism for the targeted diesel subsidy programme.
A follow-up meeting involving Sabah government agencies, the Finance Ministry and relevant federal agencies was held on July 17.
It was previously reported that Sabahans had called for the Budi Diesel eligibility criteria to take into account the state's vast geography and longer travel distances, which differ from conditions in Peninsular Malaysia.
Some residents also rely on second-hand vehicles, prompting calls for a simpler approach similar to Budi95, where eligible Malaysians with a valid driving licence qualify for assistance.
