FT ministry’s initiatives ease hardships
THE Covid-19 pandemic has impacted the economy as well as the livelihoods of people. To ease the hardships caused by the prolonged pandemic, the Federal Territories (FT) Ministry has unveiled another five initiatives which provide continuous aid and help for dwellers living in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, and Labuan.
The aid covers all groups in the community, including those living in people’s housing projects, business owners, small traders and hawkers, and has benefitted 530,000 Federal Territories dwellers.
The initiatives spelt out by the ministry are namely: a 10 per cent assessment tax rebates for hotels and malls in Kuala Lumpur; 10 per cent assessment tax rebates for commercial and industrial buildings in Putrajaya; 25 per cent assessment tax rebates for private higher learning institutions in Kuala Lumpur; deferment on assessment tax payment in Federal Territories, and an exemption on the penalty of late payments of assessment tax arrears in Federal Territories.
According to the ministry, 759 premises in Kuala Lumpur will benefit from the 10 per cent in rebates, namely 666 hotels and 93 shopping malls, involving a cost of RM14.3 million.
Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) chief executive officer Yap Lip Seng said the hotel industry was appreciative of every effort to ease the financial burden of businesses.
“We hope that the said rebates will be extended till next year and that the other states will follow suit and extend assessment rebates to hotels.”
Malaysia Budget and Business Hotel Association (MyBHA) national deputy president Dr Sri Ganesh Michiel thanked the Federal Territories Ministry for giving rebates to hotels, who have been suffering since Covid-19 hit the country.
“While we were thankful for the 10 per cent rebate, we hope that the ministry would allow a higher percentage or a waiver on the assessment tax rebate to help our members handle the impact of the prolonged lockdown and the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Also getting rebates are 24 private higher learning institutions, involving cost RM9.21 million, with rebates at 25 per cent.
The rebates given to shopping malls, hotels, and private higher learning institutions would cost a total of RM23.51 million to DBKL.
As for a 10 per cent rebate for commercial and industrial buildings in Putrajaya,
it would cost RM1.5 million to PPj.
The total revenue exclusion to DBKL and PPj through assessment tax rebates is RM25 million.
The deferment of assessment tax payment until December this year, involves all residential and commercial premises owners in the Federal Territories.
Under the initiative, owners of premises are allowed to pay assessment tax in instalments until Dec 31, without incurring a late penalty charge.
The ministry is also giving an exemption on the penalty of late payments of assessment tax arrears for last year and this year for those living in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, and Labuan, involving a cost of RM7.6 million.
Under the initiative, accounts with arrears as of Dec 31, will not be subjected to late penalty charges (including accounts with arrears in 2020).
To date, more than 50 initiatives, which was first rolled out in March last year, were introduced by the ministry, to assist individuals, families, businesses, and establishments in the Federal Territories.
Meanwhile, the ministry’s initiative to speed up vaccination in Kuala Lumpur via its MYMedic@Wilayah Vaccine Mobile Truck programme has come to fruition with KL achieving herd immunity on Aug 15, after 85 per cent of its adult population was vaccinated against Covid-19.
The initiative, which is to complement the Covid-19 National Immunisation Programme, took off on June 7 at PPR Kampung Muhibbah in Bukit Jalil.
The programme has been carried out at 67 People’s Housing Projects (PPR), City Hall Public Housing (PA) and Kampung Tradisi (traditional villages) that have a high density of people.
It has also been extended to the industrial sectors, homeless community, Kuala Lumpur wholesale market and the Selayang wholesale market.
As of Aug 17, a total of 87,238 of Putrajaya’s residents have completed their vaccination, while 122,146 have received their first dose.
In Labuan, 68,101 people (68.4 per cent) have received the first and second doses of the vaccine.
Another initiative is Rumah Prihatin@Grand Seasons, which is managed by Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan in collaboration with Grand Seasons Hotel, Pulse Grande Hotel ( a subsidiary of Putrajaya Corporation) and with the support of a few NGOs. Rumah Prihatin@Grand Seasons is aimed at easing the burden of people who have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
It serves as a platform for the ministry
and related agencies to coordinate and treat those affected by the pandemic, with the support of volunteers, associations and corporations.
It offers five main components namely Prihatin Kitchen, Prihatin Accommodations, Prihatin Mental Health Services, Prihatin Vaccination Services, and Jejak Prihatin Operation Centre.
Prihatin Kitchen is a centralised kitchen that provides 1,000 free meals to the homeless, the poor, the frontliners, travellers and the underprivileged, while Prihatin Accommodations offers 300 rooms for those in need of temporary accommodation with fee-based on pay minimum as you can afford.
The Prihatin Mental Health Services is a special service for those facing stress due to Covid-19, where counselling is provided to an individual by a registered counsellor.
The Jejak Prihatin Operation Centre coordinates with volunteers which will go down to the ground and meet the people in the Federal Territories and collect information on complaints and assistance needed, either in the physical, mental or spiritual form.
The ministry, working together with the Federal Territory Health Department, has also provided free, Special Covid-19 Low-Risk Quarantine and Treatment Centres (PKRC) specially for PPR and PA residents who are infected with Covid-19 in Category 1 and 2.
The initiative was taken by the ministry after seeing that the houses in PPR and PA were not conducive for home quarantine.
As the public housing and people‘s housing project homes are smaller, infections could be spread more easily among family members.
The homes, which are either oneroom or two-room homes, also have poor ventilation. The special quarantine centres enable those who are under quarantine to be separated from their other family members and also provide them with better health supervision.
The four private PKRCs are at Royal Chulan Hotel, Jalan Conlay; International Youth Centre (IYC) in Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras; Tamu Hotel and Suites Kampung Baru and Travelodge City Centre Hotel.