Subsidy on diesel to go first, says Shahrir - The Star

By Teh Eng Hock

KUALA LUMPUR: The restructured fuel subsidy scheme will see the removal of subsidy on diesel first.

Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Samad said diesel would soon be sold at the market rate at the pumps when a mechanism to deliver subsidies directly to those entitled has been decided upon.

“We are looking at diesel first, and how to ensure that subsidised diesel gets to the right groups, especially to the transport sector and (those involved in) certain economic activities which require diesel subsidy so that we can cut out leakages.

“Schoolbuses for example. We have to have a mechanism on how to deliver the diesel (subsidy) to the schoolbus drivers so that the cost of transport will not go up,” he said.

Without the subsidy, diesel will cost more than RM2 a litre. The price of diesel at the pump now is RM1.581 a litre.

Shahrir said the move to restructure the fuel subsidy was necessary to ensure the money was not wasted through various ways such as diesel smuggling.

[More at http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/4/25/nation/21060846&sec=nation]