Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said today the ridicule and criticism hurled by the opposition at the 1Malaysia Shops (KR1M) has helped to raise sales at the outlets.      

NONE The more they criticise these shops, the more the people are drawn to these outlets and the more the sales, he said.      

"I would like to encourage them (the opposition) to carry on with their criticism," he said when opening the Kampung Pulau Serai Integrated Housing Community Centre, Pekan.      

Also present were Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Pahang Menteri Besar Adnan Yaakob.  

Najib said the KR1M have now become the preferred outlets of the people, adding that this is reflected in the sales to the tune of RM20,000 per day at the Pekan KR1M since it opened a month ago.         

The prime minister said there was a demand for more KR1M nationwide and, as such, 85 more of these shops would be set up by the end of this year.       

"Wherever I go, many people including elected representatives ask for KR1M in their areas," he said.           

"Projects such as these are not just rhetoric but reality with proven success," he said.      

Najib said the Pekan KR1M, which is the biggest and resembles a mall, is the 27th such shop.   

Angkasa gets on bandwagon

Angkatan Koperasi Kebangsaan Malaysia Berhad (Angkasa) plans to open up Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia (KR1M) stores in school cooperatives throughout the country, said its deputy president Abdul Fattah Abdullah.        

He said they have received numerous requests from such organisations to expand the KR1M concept to include them.         

"For now, we plan to open a KR1M store in each school cooperative in every state," he said in Jerantut, today.       

"There are 2,161 such cooperatives in the country and it's a big prospect," he added.      

He was speaking at Felda Padang Piol Jerantut today after handing over a Takaful insurance cheque to Mat Daud Awang, 54, father of an Angkasa staff, Mohd Nasaruddin, 26, who passed away in Aug 2011.     

- Bernama