KUALA LUMPUR, September 20 – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Tuesday provided assurance that there will be no increase in the price of local rice. The Prime Minister stated that he had directed relevant ministers to visit the ground and monitor the prices of goods in the market, as the issue cannot be taken lightly by the government. While we assure that the price of local rice will not increase, there are reports of shortages in some areas, and this must be handled appropriately. For instance, understand the increase in onion prices; since August, India has increased onion export duties by 40 percent.
“… and we have to understand this, India decided to raise onion export prices by 40 percent, and surely for us in Malaysia, who buy onions from India, will be affected by that price increase, just as India’s decision last month to restrict the export of white rice,” he said. He made these remarks while wrapping up the debate on the Mid-Term Review of the 12th Malaysia Plan (MR12) for the Ministry of Finance in the Dewan Rakyat today. Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister, said that based on the supply and demand theory, developments like these are bound to result in price increases for goods.
Hence, the government has taken steps to provide additional subsidies to ensure that local rice prices remain low. “… so following the supply and demand theory, when exports are restricted, prices rise, and therefore we add subsidies to ensure that local rice prices do not rise,” he said. Meanwhile, commenting on allocations for opposition Members of Parliament, Anwar reiterated the government’s open and willingness to negotiate, as previously done by former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
In fact, he said he had tasked Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof to lead discussions on the matter as the government’s representative. “The final decision of the Minister of Finance and the Prime Minister, as approved by Bera (Ismail Sabri) when he was Prime Minister, is more or less what we are using. If you want allocations, discuss… negotiate, don’t be arrogant,” said the Prime Minister.
