Poor gets poorer in Sabah with price hikes

KOTA KINABALU: In Malaysia's capital city Kuala Lumpur where salaries are higher, a 55% increase in white sugar price may dent the pocket but in Sabah's vastly rural interior it could mean having to go without.

That is the direct impact of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's recent price hike on fuel and sugar. The price increases will plunge the poorest state in Malaysia into further abyss.

For the 40% of Malaysia's poorest people who are centred in Sabah, small 'luxuries' such as sugar, oil and milk or a hot meal in the local coffee shop is now not a matter of "can I afford it."

They simply cannot afford it. The recent announcement of price increases in food and beverage items by the association of coffee shops operators simply means the regular 'teh tarik' is a luxury.

Sabah incidently has among the highest cost of living in Malaysia. The additional increase in prices of consumer items will further cripple livelihoods here.

The increases are a direct chain effect of the federal government's decision to impose 'minimal impact' increase in the price of fuel and sugar.