Chiew Choon Man: BUDI95 Needs Improved Mechanisms to Ensure Fishermen and Farmers Benefit

(Miri, 26th) Miri Member of Parliament Chiew Choon Man yesterday attended the 'BUDI MADANI RON95 (BUDI95)' implementation meeting convened by the Ministry of Finance, where he raised practical issues concerning the rights of fishermen, farmers, and grassroots communities. He called on the government to improve related mechanisms to ensure the new subsidy policy truly benefits the targeted groups.
The meeting was chaired by the Second Finance Minister Dato’ Sri Amir Hamzah, with a briefing by Treasury Secretary General Dato’ Johan Mahmood. At the meeting, Chiew Choon Man reflected several grassroots concerns, including:
Whether inland and coastal fishermen can obtain additional quotas through MySubsidi95 and set up special mechanisms to assist them;
Unstable telecommunications networks in remote areas had previously affected the distribution of the Basic Assistance Fund (SARA), urging the government to address this seriously;
Many farmers use RON95 as fuel for boats and engines but do not have a driver's license or private car. He suggested the government set up special assistance methods for this group;
A technical support team needs to be established at the initial stage of the plan to ensure the back-end system operates stably and to avoid congestion issues at petrol stations.

In response to the above issues, the Ministry of Finance stated that fishermen, farmers, and commercial users with related needs can apply for a Fleet Card via the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living (KPDN). The Ministry has also worked with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to ensure all petrol stations nationwide have stable networks, and to strengthen system support to handle large transaction volumes.
Chiew Choon Man thanked the Ministry of Finance for their thorough preparation, believing that BUDI95 helps reduce subsidy leakage while allowing citizens to continue enjoying the RON95 fuel price of RM1.99 per litre.
He emphasized that the government must establish a rapid response mechanism in the initial phase to reduce technical issues and provide more user-friendly operations, ensuring no disruption to the commercial sector.
According to the Ministry of Finance, a subsidy quota of 300 litres is sufficient to meet most private usage needs. Through BUDI95, the public only needs one extra step for MyKad verification to enjoy subsidized fuel.
Chiew Choon Man stated that he will continue to monitor the implementation of BUDI95 to ensure policy goals are met and people truly benefit. He also urged citizens with comments or issues about the program to call the assistance hotline 1300-88-9595 or email pusatkhidmatmiri@gmail.com so that he can further reflect these in Parliament.