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APRIL 24, 2020

The movement control order (MCO) has been extended. There also appears no indication that the government would be extending further financial support to low and middle income families.

During this current MCO as well as with the extension of the order, more workers will be losing jobs, those working will have their incomes reduced; and all workers and those seeking employment will be very worried of their future as jobs disappear and the economic outlook seems to be increasingly bleak.

Yet households have to continue to meet their financial obligations. One of their current major obligations is their communication and utility bills. For certain as families spend an increasing amount of time at home, their utility and communication bills are expected to increase substantially.

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April 22, 2020

HARI BUMI tahun ini memberi peluang untuk kita semua merenungkan hubungan kita sebagai insan dengan alam keseluruhannya.

Mesej penting yang cuba disampaikan oleh alam semula jadi, lebih-lebih lagi seiringan dengan krisis penularan wabak sekarang ini, sepatutnya menginsafkan umat manusia akan segala kerosakan yang telah dan sedang dilakukan.


Sambutan Hari Bumi tahun ini menjanjikan perubahan persekitaran dengan memfokuskan makna hubungan antara alam, iklim dan pembangunan lestari, selain melihat kembali tumpuan isu sebelum ini tentang penyelesaian berasaskan alam seperti perhutanan dan perlindungan bakau.

Penangguhan COP26, ataupun Persidangan Perubahan Iklim Pertubuhan Bangsa-bangsa Bersatu 2020 jelas merupakan tindakan rasional tatkala dunia sedang berhadapan dengan pandemik COVID-19.

Tidak dinafikan, kita berada di ambang kepupusan di mana kerosakan alam sekitar sukar dipulihkan. Kita harus menjangkakan cabaran biodiversiti dan krisis iklim akan tetap ada walaupun penularan COVID-19 mulai reda, namun cita-cita COP15 dan COP26 mesti diteruskan dan dibawa ke tahun 2021.

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upm Archives - BookDocApril 22, 2020 20:49 MYT

There is adequate supply of food products and other basic necessities to meet the demands throughout the country, including during the Ramadan period, said Senior Minister (Secuirity Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

Ismail Sabri, who is also Defence Minister, hoped that the people would plan their Ramadan shopping to avoid over-crowding at any premises and also to abide by the social distancing regulations.
"The people are advised not to worry about the supply of food and daily necessities for Ramadan as there is enough,” he said at a daily news conference on the Movement Control Order (MCO) here today.

Ismail Sabri said the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry had conducted daily checks on the supply of 25 types of goods at 1,133 business premises comprising 833 retailers, 268 wholesalers and 32 factories.

This was to ensure that there were enough supplies and the people would not have to worry or rush to buy food during the MCO period, he added.

Ismail Sabri assured the people that the regular monitoring done by the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry and the Agriculture and Food Industry Ministry showed that there was enough supply of wet goods and other basic necessities to meet the people’s demands.

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21 Apr 2020

FOMCA has been receiving a lot of complaints and enquiries on fees charged by education institutions and bus and van operators. The education institutions range from kindergartens, day-care centres and private schools.

Parents are hoping that fees would be waived as most of them are not working and are finding it difficult to make ends meet under the movement control order (MCO).

Some of these institutions are receiving aid under the Prihatin Stimulus Package. Those occupying rented premises have been allowed to defer rental and loan payments. As these institutions are not operating full-time at the moment, they have minimal operational costs. It may not be fair to charge parents the full fee.

Not all parents are able to coach their children at home as the syllabus and teaching approaches have changed. The education minister recently said that not many parents have computers or internet links at home to access online learning.

Some parents are not IT savvy thus complicating the situation.

A few kindergartens are offering online lessons for three year olds but these kids are finding it hard to grasp what is taught as many are not able to read without face-to- face coaching. Parents are requesting for a reduction in fees.

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Noorhisyam

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Tuesday, 21 Apr 2020 02:14 PM MYT

APRIL 21 — Clearly the Covid-19 movement control order (MCO) has affected everyone; with particularly severe impact on the poor and low income.

Loss of jobs and thus incomes, reduced incomes made worse by future uncertainties have had a severe negative impact on consumer financial and overall well-being.

To make matters worse, some retailers are manipulating prices and making excessive profits by increasing prices, making the life of the poor even more difficult.

Still consumers need money to feed their families, meet their obligations and meet other essential responsibilities.

Clearly the financial support by government to assist consumers to survive these difficult times is extremely limited. Firstly, many self-employed and daily wage workers are excluded.

Secondly, the one-off aid received is clearly insufficient to meet personal and household basic needs and consumers have to find their own means to raise cash to meet their basic obligations.

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April 21, 2020

PETALING JAYA: A consumer group has urged the authorities to draw up clearer guidelines for landlords on collection of rent from tenants.

Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations president Marimuthu Nadason said houseowners had been given a 6 month moratorium on housing loans and landlords should extend the same benefit to tenants.

He called for “at least 50% discounts in rent for three months” because the people had to live in uncertain times.

He urged the government to make a clear stand on such policies instead of leaving it up to the goodwill of the landlord.

Marimuthu said many employers might announce job cuts once the movement control order is lifted.

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April 19, 2020

PETALING JAYA: Two consumer groups have asked the Mydin chain of hypermarkets to follow the advice of the health ministry on its disinfection process as “it is better to be safe than to face any health consequences later”.

Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca) president Paul Selvaraj said the company should only use disinfectants confirmed by the ministry to be safe.

“At this point, it is best to listen to expert advice from the ministry,” he told FMT, adding that it was possible the disinfectants could have some negative effect on people.

Last week, health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah had said that spraying an individual with chemicals for 30 seconds was not enough to effectively disinfect the person.

 He also said the chemicals used in such equipment could be harmful to the eyes and mouth.

“From our assessment, there is no proof that these equipment are effective in reducing the spread of Covid-19,” Noor Hisham said at a daily briefing.

Mydin’s managing director, Ameer Ali Mydin, had said his chain uses a quaternary-based disinfectant solution, which is 100% alcohol-free and acts as first-level protection against cross-contamination.

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April 17, 2020

PETALING JAYA: Two consumer groups have denounced the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) for deciding to be lenient with airlines unable to meet the regulatory deadline in giving refunds to would-be passengers booked on flights that have been cancelled.

Speaking to FMT, spokesmen for the Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca) and the Malaysia Consumer Movement (MCM) accused the commission of siding with the airline industry at the expense of consumers.

Fomca chief executive Paul Selvaraj said airlines should make cash repayments or, if they were offering credit notes, provide incentives to those accepting them.

“Consumers should have the right to cash repayments unless they are agreeable to other forms of restitution,” he said. “Airlines don’t have the right to force consumers to accept their terms.

“Mavcom, as a regulatory organisation, should ensure consumer protection and well-being.”

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Thursday, 16 Apr 2020 05:30 PM 

APRIL 16 — Our nation is facing a pandemic which is creating animosity among families and is mounting daily. Companies and SMEs are closing down with workers taking pay cuts or receiving no pay, while the self-employed are finding it hard to sustain their families. All these are due do the Covid-19 and the movement control order (MCO) which has been extended further.

The government came up with stimulus package to assist those badly hit by the MCO. Banks also came up with their assistance programme to consumers by declaring a moratorium of 6 months payments on loans to enquire or clarify their issues.

Fomca has been receiving a lot of enquiries related to banking issues. Consumers are calling Fomca as the banks do not appear to have proper communication channel for the customers who have taken up loans with banks.

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