Foreigners help us too: Syed Saddiq slams PM’s stand on subsidies being only for rakyat

KUALA LUMPUR – Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman has panned Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob for his assertion that foreigners here are unfairly enjoying the benefit of subsidies paid for by Malaysian taxpayers.

Taking to Twitter today, the Muar MP stressed that the issue of rising costs of living should not factor in race nor citizenship as people living in Malaysia have contributed in their own way to the betterment of the nation.

“What about the expats here? Why is there discrimination towards the Bangladeshi and Rohingyas?” he questioned, alleging that Ismail Sabri’s statement highlights the practice of double standards by the government.

Pointing out that foreign workers aid in the infrastructure and economic progress of the nation, he said that food should be a basic human right afforded to everyone.

“A majority of those who built the Merdeka 118 tower and are working in the sanitation sectors here are foreign workers.

“Food is a human right, everyone has the right to sufficient food,” he said, adding that with chicken being a staple source of protein, those with manual labour jobs rely on the meat for sustenance.

“Imagine if this sort of treatment was dished out to Malaysians living in the homeland of others,” he lamented.

Yesterday, Ismail Sabri said that food subsidies provided by Putrajaya to alleviate the increasing costs of goods are meant for citizens of this country, not foreign residents.

He said that while he is not a fan of the move to implement subsidies for chicken, he was forced to make the call as there was no other option.

“Bangladeshi workers and the Rohingyas (who) we often criticise also eat chicken and we are paying for the subsidies,” said Ismail Sabri while noting that the government has spent nearly RM700 million on subsidies.

“The concept of subsidisation should be for the poor and they must be our people.” – The Vibes, July 3, 2022