Public transport fare hikes of more than 20 percent for taxi, express buses and Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) train services announced today could be a form of anti-government sabotage, said Umno Youth exco member Ibdillah Ishak.

The fare hikes which would take place in May come as Malaysians brace for the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on April 1.

"As a government-linked company, KTMB should not burden the people through such drastic fare hikes. Have they forgotten their obligation to help the people?

"The government must take the taxi, bus and KTMB fare hikes seriously. Is this a pre-GST sabotage against the government?" he asked on Twitter .

Sebagai salah sebuah syarikat GLC, KTMB tak patut bebankan rakyat dengan kenaikan kadar yg drastik. Dah lupa tanggungjawab utk bantu rakyat?

— Ibdilillah Ishak (@ibdil) March 19, 2015

Kerajaan harus ambil serius kenaikan kadar harga teksi, bas & KTM hari ini. Unsur sabotaj trhdp K'jaan sblm GST dilaksanakan? @NajibRazak

— Ibdilillah Ishak (@ibdil) March 19, 2015

On the other hand, pro-Umno blog MYKMU.net questioned Land Public Transport Commission (Spad) chairperson Syed Hamid Albar's rationale of announcing the hikes today.

"What is Syed Hamid's motive? Even if his excuse of raising the standard of living for bus and taxi drivers is reasonable, the timing of the announcement is questionable," it said.

Also smelling a plot was former deputy higher education minister Saifuddin Abdullah.

"Who else is going to raise fares? Have they gone mad? Let's travel by jet instead!

"Oh dear, Spad and KTMB. Are you trying to sabotage the PM or what?" he asked.

SPAD umum tambang teksi/bas ekspres naik. KTMB umum tambang keretapi naik. Lepas ni saper pulak? Dah gila ke apa? Jom naik jetlah!

— Saifuddin Abdullah (@saifuddinabd) March 19, 2015

"There will be people who will later answer like this: "If you can't afford it, don't take cabs or express buses. Just ride bicycles, it is better for your health, bla bla bla," Saifuddin tweeted.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak is under fire for ordering a new VVIP jet, which the Prime Minister's Department said would replace a 15-year-old plane in the fleet.

Triple blow

KTMB today announced that KTM Komuter fares would increase up to 20 percent, or RM7.10, depending on travel distance starting May 1.

Before that Spad revealed that taxi fares would go up effective today while express bus fares would be increased from May 15.

Although flag-down rates for budget taxis nationwide remains unchanged at RM3, the fare has been revised to 25 sen every 200m, up from 10 sen every 115m.

A rough calculation based on a 11.6km trip from Midvalley City to Sunway Pyramid shows that the fare, inclusive of flag-down rate, would increase from RM12.20 to RM16.25, up 33 percent.

Express buses would see its current fare increase from 9.3 sen per km to 11.4 sen per km, a 22.6 percent increase.

According to a Spad fact sheet, this means that a ticket to Ipoh from Kuala Lumpur would cost RM25.30 instead of RM20.60 previously.

The government has allowed taxi and bus fare operators to hike up their charges despite falling fuel costs and ongoing government campaigns to reduce the price of goods and services.