MIRI – The Sarawak government’s recent announcement of more aid packages under Bantuan Khas Sarawak Sayangku (BKSS) is aimed at enticing voters ahead of the 15th general election, local social activist Willie Kajan said.
Kajan and another social activist, Bruce Chai, questioned why the Sarawak government was announcing more aid packages when it has not delivered on its previous promises.
They said the seventh and eighth aid packages under BKSS have not been fully disbursed, yet Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg had recently announced BKSS 9.0.
Under BKSS 7.0 and 8.0, which were announced last year, the state government promised a one-off cash payment ranging from RM3,000 to RM10,000 to small and medium enterprises, as well as to small businesses like food traders and hawkers, said Kajan.
“Until today, it is said that as many as 40,000 people in these categories of businesses have yet to receive their BKSS 7.0 and 8.0 payments.
“Now we are hearing about BKSS 9.0. The state leaders must honour their promises in full for their BKSS 7.0 and 8.0 first.
“It is a well-known fact that BKSS 7.0 and 8.0 were meant to be state election goodies for last year,” Kajan added, noting that these two packages were announced in the run-up to the Sarawak election last December.
“Now this latest BKSS 9.0 scheme looks like ‘goodies’ for the coming 15th general election.”
Meanwhile, Chai said BKSS 9.0, which offers discounts on water and electricity bills as well as assessment rates, will not be of much help, since everything else is more expensive.
“The cost of living has shot up many times in Miri, and BKSS 9.0 is not going to alleviate our suffering,” he said.
Yesterday, Abang Johari announced more subsidies and financial incentives for Sarawak under BKSS 9.0.
The latest aid package will cost the state RM1 billion and covers assistance for businesses as well as ordinary folk.
Under BKSS 9.0, consumers will enjoy a discount of between 5% to 25% on their monthly electricity bills from July to December, and a discount of between 10% to 25% on water bills for the same period.
A 25% discount is offered on assessment rates for those paying more than RM400 per year, and 30% on those paying less than that amount annually.
Rental of hawker stalls and market booths from local council authorities will also be discounted by 50%.
To help the local construction industry, the state will allow variation of prices for construction raw materials for residential and commercial building projects under the jurisdiction of the state government. – The Vibes, August 30, 2022
