THE Sarawak government has spent RM1.741 billion on the Sarawakku Sayang Special Aid Packages (BKSS).to cushion and mitigate the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg said the pandemic had severely affected the economy and the livelihood of the people.
“Therefore, proactive actions were required to not only save lives but also the health of our economy,” he told the august House when tabling the 2021 State Budget yesterday (Nov 9).
Abang Johari explained that the BKSS were divided into BKSS 1.0, BKSS 2.0, BKSS 3.0 and BKSS 4.0. The various measures implemented, he added, had helped individuals and businesses. They were as follows:
1. Cash incentives for people of various backgrounds:
a) Cash incentives for B40 under Bantuan Sara Hidup of RM250 per month for six months, from April to September 2020 amounting to RM645 million;
b) Cash incentives to frontliners for six months amounting to RM20.4 million involving doctors and nurses (RM300 per month); personnel in Immigration Department, Royal Malaysian Customs Department, Local Authorities, Civil Defense Force, Fire and Rescue Department, Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) and People’s Volunteer Corps – Rela (RM200 per month).
c) One-off financial assistance amounting to RM237.4 million for the following groups: RM500 for 347,806 singles aged 21 years old earning income RM2,000 and below; RM1,500 to about 30,000 household heads (Ketua Isi Rumah); RM500 to 199 owners and operators of penambang registered with the Sarawak Rivers Board; RM600 to 959 licensed van operators; RM600 to 1,976 taxi drivers; RM600 to 739 school buses and vans; RM1,500 special assistance to 145 licensed tourists and 113 park guides; and RM1,500 to 500 media frontliners.
2. Assistance for the business community:
a) RM2,250 special grant to more than 65,000 hawkers and petty traders through Sarawak Pay and cash vouchers involving a total sum of RM147.25 million;
b) Interest free soft loans for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to more than 40,000 SMEs with an allocation of RM80.7 million;
c) Provision of additional RM20 million funds from existing RM30 million approved for Micro-Credit Scheme for SMEs to expand and sustain their businesses;
d) Deferment of loan repayment for borrowers of Skim Pinjaman Industri Kecil dan Sederhana (SPIKS) covering a period of six months effective from March worth RM1.3 million;
e) Abolishment of two percent interest rates to zero percent for three and a half years under Micro-Credit Scheme involving an allocation of RM3.0 million;
f) Waiver of rentals to SMEs in retail sector operating on premises owned by state statutory bodies and government-linked companies (GLCs) involving a sum of RM1.0 million;
g) Fifty percent discount for rentals of market and stalls covering a period of six months benefiting more than 10,000 hawkers involving a sum of RM2.08 million; and
h) Waiver of permits and licences fees to traders, hawkers and petty traders in the various local authorities involving a sum of RM8.24 million.
3. Additional measures:
a) Fifty percent rental discount on renting of Housing Development Corporation (HDC) housing units for a period of six months to more than 3,200 tenants;
b) Six months’ electricity and water bill discount worth RM157.43 million;
c) Twenty-five percent discount on annual assessment rates above RM400 threshold to residential, commercial, industrial and special purpose holdings for 2020 involving a sum of RM74.58 million;
d) Thirty percent discount for land rents to all land users for year 2020 benefitting 52,403 commercial, industrial, residential, large-scale plantations, and other public facilities involving a sum of RM11.84 million; and
e) One-off deferment of land premium payment for year 2020 benefitting 1,721 stakeholders across Sarawak which include agriculture, residential, commercial and industrial units as well as private and public institutions involving a sum of RM166.3 million.
4. Other assistances:
a) Distribution of free face masks throughout Sarawak costing RM3.2 million;
b) One-off assistance funds to hospitals throughout Sarawak (hospital needs & PPE) amounting to RM10.0 million; and
c) Food packages for frontliners amounting to RM1.0 million.
5. Extension of assistances (through BKSS 4.0) involving a sum of RM104.84 million:
a) Monthly electricity bill discount of five to 25 percent for domestic, commercial and industrial consumers from October until December this year. The discount will benefit 686,847 users throughout Sarawak. This special one-off discount of electricity bill will involve a sum of RM83.4 million.
b) Monthly water bill discount of 10 to 25 percent for domestic, commercial and industrial consumers from October until December this year. This special one-off discount will benefit 568,247 consumers throughout the state involving a sum of RM12.63 million.
c) Fifty percent discount on HDC rental from October to December this year. This assistance is expected to benefit more than 3,200 tenants involving a sum of RM1.3 million.
d) Fifty percent discount for rental of markets and stalls until December this year. This assistance is expected to benefit more than 10,000 hawkers under the various Local Councils. A sum of RM0.8 million is allocated for this purpose.
e) Waiver of permits and licence fees to traders, hawkers, night market traders, and tamu operations, to ease their financing burden and this initiative amounts to RM4.12 million.
f) Waiver of rentals to SMEs in retail sector operating on premises owned by state GLCs and statutory bodies until December this year, involving a sum of RM1 million. g) One-off cash assistance of RM500 to 3,186 e-hailing drivers and instructors covering a period of three months until December, involving a total sum of RM1.59 million.
