Traders, businesses urged not to hoard subsidised cooking oil
KUCHI NG: T r ader s and enterprises should not hoard the 1kg polybags of subsidised cooking oil because they are intended for the needs of lower income households.
Ministry of Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism (KPDNKK) Sarawak director Datuk Stanley Tan said that the current stock for the 1kg polybag of cooking oil under various brands priced at RM2.50 in Kuching from Jan 1 to 17 was 19,737 kilogrammes.
“As such, the supply of the 1kg pack of subsidised oil is stable and sufficient but demand has increased drastically for the month of January due to the Chinese New Year festive celebration,” he told The Borneo Post when contacted yesterday.
“But there is no need to panic because we have directed packers and distributors to increase production and distribution of the 1kg pack in a controlled manner,” he explained.
The packing and distribution, he added, were done in stages in accordance with the monthly quota made available for Sarawak.
Tan said this in response to Pending assemblywoman Violet Yong from Democratic Action Party (DAP) who had on Wednesday complained about the shortage of subsidised cooking oil in the market. On factors contributing to stocks running low, Tan pointed out that the problem could be created by traders who purchased the subsidised cooking oil for business purposes although they were not eligible.
“We understand that the subsidised cooking oil is much cheaper c ompared to the unsubsidised ones and traders would opt for the former to maximise their profits.
“And during this festive period, purchases have exceeded the normal quantity and daily needs that have been fixed as subsidised cooking oil is listed as a controlled item,” he added.
In view of the situation, Tan advised traders and enterprises as well as well-off consumers to choose the unsubsidised or regular priced cooking oil that were in abundance in the market.
“In fact, the 1kg pack of cooking oil is intended for lower income households,” he said.
He gave his assurance that KPDNKK will continue to monitor and carry out inspection to ensure proper management of all controlled items including cooking oil at all levels from factory, packaging, wholesalers, to retailers.