KUCHING: Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) Youth chief Michael Tiang called on the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs to hold dialogue sessions with merchants for them to understand the rules before implementing any action against them.
In a press conference yesterday at the SUPP Headquarters, Tiang made the suggestion as the SUPP Youth had gone to the ground early this week to talk to merchants and found that 90 percent of them were unhappy with the situation of post- Sales and Service Tax (SST).
He said that many were under queries on the Price Control and Anti- Profiteering Act 2011after the launching of SST and things were made more difficult as each officer had their own rules and emphasis on different requirement of regulations.
He also added that many complained of the endless documents required and the harassment they received.
Tiang explained they met up with merchants to see if the implementation of STT will affect their prices as one of Pakatan Harapan (PH) promises is to reduce the people’s burden but revealed that from what he gathered, things were worsening for the people and the merchants.
“I can confirm that the majority of consumer products experienced a price hike of 5 to 10 percent; other hidden hikes included reduction in promotion and incentives by suppliers,” he said, adding that with the price hikes, traders had to adjust their retailing prices too.
He is also worried that the implementation of the new minimal wage nationwide from RM920 to RM1,100 will further burden the people with the weak currency and economic downturn.
“They can increase the rate accordingly to the areas concerned as what is enough for the rural or sub-urban areas may not be enough for those in the city,” he said.
