KUCHING: About RM6,554,327 worth of subsidised diesel was seized throughout the year 2023 in Sarawak.
According to Domestic Trade and Cost of Living (KPDN) Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, the said value was the result of 168 cases recorded under the implementation of Ops Tiris.
He noted that of the number, 62 percent of the cases are through the submission of cases by the police in which 17 cases were handed over by the Royal Malaysian Police (RMP), 74 cases by Marine Police Force (MPF), and 13 cases by the General Action Force.
“This shows that the police have played a very good role in assisting the KPDN in implementing enforcement to deal with the issue of subsidised diesel leakages.
“Hence, during my meeting with Sarawak Police Commissioner Datuk Mancha Ata today, we discussed the strategy to improve the continuous cooperation between the KPDN and the RMP Sarawak,” he said.
He said this during the press conference after officiating the Jualan Rahmah Santubong at Mydin, Bandar Baru Samariang here on Friday.
He also disclosed that during their meeting, they also discussed on how to streamline the standard operation procedure (SOP) of the handing over of the cases.
“This is so that any agency that finds any violation of the law related to diesel can submit the case immediately with the right SOP to ensure that the evidence and details of the case are submitted to allow KPDN to take further action.
“We hope that by strengthening this aspect of enforcement, we will be able to deal with the issue of diesel leakage in Sarawak more effectively with the issue of diesel leakage in Sabah Sarawak,” he said.
Following this, Armizan stated that the scope of Ops Tiris in 2024 will continue to be strengthened with not only covering subsidised diesel oil but also expanding to other controlled items such as RON 95 petrol, subsidised one kilogram polybag cooking oil, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and refined white sugar.
“The retargeting of subsidies, especially diesel fuel, will be implemented by the government this year as announced by the Prime Minister in Budget 2024 for Peninsular Malaysia except Sabah and Sarawak.
“Therefore, to ensure that subsidised diesel fuel in Sabah and Sarawak reaches the target group, KPDN together with PDRM and other enforcement agencies continue to commit to combating the leakage of subsidised controlled goods with a comprehensive government approach,” he said.
