Implementing targeted subsidies for fuel not easy - PM

The government is still working on a viable mechanism to impose targeted subsidies for diesel and petrol, according to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

He told reporters this morning that it was not an easy task for diesel and petrol as compared to implementing targeted subsidies for electricity.

"The implementation is very complex. Unlike electricity, you know the house, the factory, and that is okay.

"But diesel is difficult. You may see the car, but sometimes it is the driver, sometimes they can take from a small car and pass (the subsidised fuel) to a big car.

"All these have been studied," he told reporters after visiting hawker stalls at Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Kuala Lumpur in a walkabout programme this morning.

‘Working on it’

The prime minister reiterated his policy that only the poor should receive subsidies and not the rich.

The current subsidy mechanisms for diesel and petrol benefit everyone including high-income earners who drive luxury vehicles, he added.

Asked about whether there is a timeline for its implementation, Anwar said the government intends to do it as soon as possible.

"If it (the mechanism) is ready, then we will implement it tomorrow.

"We are working on it. I don't want to give a commitment (on a specific deadline), but we want it to be as fast as possible," he said.

Early this year, the government announced its intention to revamp the country's subsidy mechanisms, aiming at a more targeted approach so that subsidies will reach only those who deserve them.

Deputy Finance Minister Ahmad Maslan in February told the Dewan Rakyat that the government could save up to RM17 billion if the T20 group is not given subsidies for diesel and petrol.

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