KUCHING: Deputy Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Chong Chieng Jen has shot down allegations that he had benefitted from the issuance of import permits (APs) to local F&B manufacturers.
The state DAP chairman said the granting of sugar APs to the eight manufacturers in Sarawak todate was the PH government’s new liberalisation policy to counter the previous BN’s monopoly policy.
“I’m appalled by the ignorant allegation by SUPP that the issuance of such AP is itself a form of cronyism. It is also a malicious allegation that I have personally profited from the issuance of such APs.
“If SUPP thinks that those who have been issued with the APs are my cronies, then the whole of F&B sector in Sarawak will and can be my cronies,” he said in alluding to a call by SUPP’s Tan Kai for Chong to reveal the AP holders.
Tan, who is a political secretary to the Chief Minister, had also asked Chong to reveal how the selection criteria was done.
Chong clarified that the APs were issued directly to the manufacturers, without any middleman transaction or “rent-seeking alibaba”.
He said any F&B manufacturer in Sarawak could apply for the sugar import permits (APs) so long as they genuinely required sugar in their production.
He stressed that imports of the sugar should only be used in their production and not for resale.
He revealed that last year, one local F&B manufacturer applied for the permit and received the AP late last year.
“Eight more F&B manufacturers have subsequently applied and got their respective APs in June this year.
“It is open to any F&B manufacturers to write in to the ministry to apply. There are no restrictions or closing date for such applications, except that the sugar imported must be for the applicants’ own use,” he stressed.
According to Chong, so far, the F&B industry was happy with this liberalisation policy because it had reduced their costs of production tremendously, a saving of approximately RM1,000 per ton and it involved hundreds and some even a few thousand tons of sugar for each manufacturer.
“The only party not happy with this new policy are the two sugar refiners, MSM Malaysia Holdings Bhd (MSM) and Central Sugar Refinery Sdn Bhd (CSR) which have, since BN’s time up till this day, enjoyed the exclusive rights to supply sugar in the whole of Malaysia. Why is SUPP now becoming their spokesman championing against this new liberalisation of sugar supply policy?”
Chong went on to say that Malaysians had suffered enough under the monopoly policy.
