He said goods in the Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia in the state capital are offered at about 30 per cent higher than the shops in Kuala Lumpur.
Wong said the cabotage policy is among the contributory factors in the price disparity although the Malaysian Shipowners’ Association (MASA) denied it.
He said a study had been done on how much the cabotage policy affected the prices of goods in Sabah.
“But according to MASA, freight charges contributed 40 per cent in the total logistics cost to the price of goods.
“The other 60 per cent, MASA claims, comprises land transportation, profit clearing and shipping agent’s charges, port charges etc. But to have a 30 per cent price disparity for goods in the state capital does not make sense as there are no transportation charges.
“It would make sense if the shops are located in the interior areas such as Keningau … but the shops are in Kota Kinabalu, where the only transportation required is from the port to the shop,” he stressed.
“If MASA sticks to its reasoning that other costs are the contributing factor, is it saying that the government is profiteering?
“Indirectly they are accusing the government of profiteering. This is something that we need to look into seriously,” Wong opined when met at Senator Paul Kong Sing Chu’s birthday celebration on Monday night.
Wong also said the state EPU (Economic Planning Unit) is doing a research on the cabotage policy issue and will be coming out with a report soon.
According to him, the cabotage policy in China is actually helping the industry as it brings down the prices.
“In the US it is the same. In China, the cabotage policy is allowing the shipping industry to compete with the land and rail transportation. That is why the shipping freight is cheaper than land … it is in favour of reducing the price in China.
“Here in Malaysia we only have the sea (transport), so it is different. The cabotage policy, instead of helping to lower the price, has become a monopoly,” he said.
Meanwhile, former Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat who was also a guest at the dinner celebration, said the partial liberalization of the cabotage policy in 2009 was not widely understood by the people.
“I think by and large the people also want to know. When you talk about the freight charges, it shouldn’t be deemed as the contributing factor to the price differential, then what percentage does the freight charges constitute in the pricing differential?
“So the Ministry of Transport in June 2009 partially liberalised the cabotage policy during my tenure. We want to know whether or not the partially liberalised cabotage policy was widely publicised within and outside the country.
“Because, until today, much to my surprise and dismay, there are still many parliamentary counterparts posing the same old questions on some of the basic fundamentals in the cabotage policy. This means that the subject matter is not well understood,” he opined.
Ong added that the question was whether the foreign shipping operators have or have not been told sufficiently about the partially liberalised cabotage policy.
“And when I asked the question to what extent have we achieved what we desired when we partially liberalised the cabotage policy, unfortunately, the answer given was totally unrelated to what I asked.
“I wanted to ask the level of effectiveness but unfortunately that was not forthcoming. This is something dear to my heart because that was a painstaking effort to overcome several hurdles before we could ultimately partially liberalise the cabotage policy in 2009.
“So, when we talked about price disparity, in terms of pricing of goods and services in Sabah and Sarawak, among other questions that I raised in parliament, I was glad to learn that the domestic trade responded quite positively by answering that the ministry actually did have allocation to subsidize such disparity.
“But to what extent or rather what is the level of effectiveness, I don’t have the statistics. Perhaps the liberalisation of the cabotage policy should have been better articulated to all the stakeholders within and outside the country, especially the shipping lines, importers and exporters abroad. And at the same time, the so-called subsidy given to arrest the price disparity should also be looked into,” he stressed.
by Nancy Lai
Pada pendapat saya, lebih baik barangan kedai 1M'sia diselaraskan.
ReplyDeleteSetuju dengan pendapat anda, harga barangan kedai 1 Malaysia perlulah diselaraskan supaya sama di Sabah, Sarawak dan Semenanjung. Ini lebih adil untuk rakyat seluruh negara.
Deleteharga barangan seluruh negara kenalah diselaraskan.
DeleteSetuju. Barulah sesuai dengan nama KR1M. Takkan la barangan di SM lagi murah daripada S&S kan.
DeletePerlu selaraskan dengan harga semenanjung. baru adil.
Deletesetuju sangat...
Deleteharga barangan KR1M Sabah, Sarawak dan SM tidak sama??
DeleteI thought KR1M is to help the people? Or is to help the Supplier to grow big?
Deletesatu cadangan yang baik agar harga barangan di KR1M diselaraskan.
DeleteDiharap kerajaan mengambil tindakan terhadap isu ini. Rakyat pasti menunggu tindakan lanjut berhubung dengan isu ini.
ReplyDeleteBetul, tidak adil rakyat Sabah terpaksa membayar 30 peratus lebih tinggi terutamanya dalam Kedai Rakyat juga. Kedai 1 Malaysia ini adalah untuk membantu mereka yang berpendapatan rendah untuk mengurangkan bebanan. Baik kerajaan memberi subsidi saja untuk kos pengangkutan supaya caj lebihan tidak ditanggung oleh rakyat.
DeleteKerajaan perlu memandang serius masalah ini kerana ia boleh mempengaruhi undi rakyat pada PRU13 ni
Deletetujuan kedai rakyat 1malaysia diwujudkan adalah untuk membantu rakyat yang berpendapatan rendah...jadi adalah lebih adil jika harga barangan adalah seragam di seluruh malaysia...perbezaan 30% ini pasti akan membebankan rakyat di sabah...kerajaan diharap akan mempertimbangkan perkara ini dengan mengambil langkah2 yang sepatutnya seperti pemberian subsidi atau memansuhkan polisi kabotaj..
Deletekalau begini, tidak layaklah dinamakan KR1M..
DeleteJika benar, jangan lah beli di kedai 1M, belilah di kedai lain.
DeleteMungkin pasal polisi kabotaj yang menyebabkan harga barangan di Sabah lebih tinggi berbanding Semenanjung, sama juga dengan kedai 1 Malaysia.
ReplyDeleteSudah terang lagi bersuluh. Polisi kabotaj salah satu punca perbezaan harga yang ketara di Sabah dengan di Semenanjung.
DeleteMungkin polisi kabotaj di Sabah perlu di kaji semula.
Deletememang sudah lama dasar kabotaj ini dituntut untuk dikaji semula dan ada juga pihak yang menginginkan ia agar dimansuhkan.
DeleteCabotage not benefit the people.
DeleteWhen the shops are in Kota Kinabalu, where the only transportation required is from the port to the shop, the cost of transportation shouldn't be that high.
ReplyDeletemungkin ada pihak mahu ambil untung lebih...
Deletekalau ada yang ambil kesempatan, objektif pembukaan KR1M ni tidaklah dapat dicapai.
Deletesemua pihak yang berkaitan harus berusaha untuk cari penyelesaian.
DeleteIt is time the government review the cabotage policy, prices of goods in East and West Malaysia should be the same, we are living in one country and using the same currency, why should there be difference in prices of goods?
ReplyDeleteBukankah matlamat KR1M ini adalah untuk sediakan barang runcit kepada pembeli dengan harga yang murah tetapi berkualiti?
DeleteCuba dulu mansuhkan polisi kabotaj dan lihat hasilnya. Daripada menidakkan polisi kabotaj bukan faktor kenapa harga barang di Sabah ni mahal.
ReplyDeleteya...betul juga...diharap kerajaan akan mempertimbangkannya demi kebaikan rakyat..
Deletebukan mudah untuk memansuhkan dasar kabotaj ni sebab ia melibatkan banyak perkara yang perlu dipertimbangkan.
DeleteBecause of the cabotage policy? they really need to review the policy!
ReplyDeleteThis is something need to be done immediately because there's nothing we can do, this is out of our control.
ReplyDeleteHarap kerajaan akan segera selesaikan masalah kabotaj ini.
ReplyDeletesemoga penyelesaian terbaik akan dapat dicari.
Deletekerajaan patut melancarkan kempen 1malaysia, 1harga..
ReplyDeletebagus juga jika KR1M di seragamkan harganya.
DeleteLower prices, a satisfactory experience, savings on groceries and customer-friendly staff: These are among reviews given by the public on Kedai Rakyat 1 Malaysia (KR1M). The KR1M is seen as helping the target group of those in rural areas with low incomes to obtain basic necessities without compromising on the quality of the goods.
ReplyDelete
DeleteThe KR1M has so far attracted not only the low-income group, but also those looking for bargains.These group of people chooses to shop at KR1M for daily necessities after making price comparisons with several supermarkets.
DeleteOthers commented that KR1M items such as canned lychee and sardines, mineral water, detergent and rice are cheaper by 10% to 30% than other stores.There are shoppers said that they are able to reduce our grocery bill by 20% to 30%,” he said.
DeleteConsumers should take advantage of KR1M because, with the rising cost of living, the savings can be passed on for other uses, such as their children’s’ education.Meanwhile, other shoppers admitted that the price of goods at KR1M is much cheaper than in supermarkets, and the quality was not disappointing.
KR1M products are definitely cheaper than supermarket items. For those items not under the KR1M brand, the price is about the same as the ones in hypermarkets.Although it is not possible to get the kind of quality as the items offered in hypermarkets, he said, KR1M brand items are still satisfactory and reasonably priced.
DeleteHowever, the government effort to alleviate the burden on low-income groups needs to be improved further.Opening KR1M shops at locations where low-income groups reside was a good move.
DeleteBeing frugal and going for the cheaper option when shopping is the best way to handle the rising cost of living, said Malaysian Islamic Consumers Association (PPIM) executive secretary, Datuk Nadzim Johan. “By maximising the KR1M and shopping wisely, they can expect to save at least 20% on monthly groceries,” he said.
ReplyDeleteHe said it is also the best way to eliminate unscrupulous traders who sell fake goods and goods of poor quality, as KR1M items are screened before they are put on the shelves.Nadzim said he hopes that the items at KR1M will eventually include wet items such as fish, chicken, fruits and vegetables so that the rakyat can benefit from it.
Delete
Delete“I’d like to propose that the government maintain the prices of essential items such as cooking oil and flour in KR1M. If we can eliminate the middlemen in acquiring the items, that would be better. The savings can be passed on to the consumers.”
DeleteThe first KR1M was launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Razak in June last year. It sold sundry shop items such as rice, powdered milk and disposable diapers under the brand name Kedai Rakyat 1 Malaysia. There are now 250 items sold at the shop under the brand name. The list is expected to grow.
KR1M was developed from the concept of selling basic necessities at a low price without emphasis on its brand name. However, quality remains a priority.“The price of goods sold at KR1M has been set at between 30 and 50% cheaper compared with popular brand names,” said Domestic Trade, Cooperation and Consumerism Minister (KPDNKK) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob recently.
DeleteThe KR1M also sells items that have been repackaged into smaller quantities, making them more affordable to consumers with low incomes.To ensure the quality of its goods and to fulfil stipulated standards, KPDNKK and the Health Ministry monitor items at the shop from time to time.
Delete
DeleteThe items are also screened by the Health Department, Agriculture Department and the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia.The government has targeted 85 KR1M premises by the end of 2012; 25 were opened last year.
kalau mahu harga barang di Sabah sama dengan harga barang di semenanjung, kasi cantum la negeri Sabah dengan negeri2 di Semenanjung..
ReplyDeleteAgree to standardize the kedai 1Malaysia price.
ReplyDeleteJiak benar harga kedai 1malaysia lebih mahal, kenapa perlu beli dari sana?
ReplyDeleteharap ini akan diberikan perhatian yang sewajarnya.
ReplyDelete