Fuel Subsidies, Anyone?

I guess, I am about to enter my working life at the wrong time. At the time when I am thinking about buying my first car, the government is thinking of removing fuel subsidies altogether. It is not like I do not see this coming because the previous Prime Minister had been warning people that the fuel subsidies will be removed at some point in the future. And apparently, that future is now.

The government is thinking of a new way to subsidise fuel so that only people who need them will benefit from the subsidies. And I have been hearing that a card-based subsidy would be used. I think I can picture it in my mind because I saw it when my brother got a fuel credit card from his company. It is just like a normal credit card where you just swipe it at the pump and just refuel your car as usual. The thing is, my brother got a RM300 monthly fuel allowance. So, when he reached the limit, the pump will just stop automatically and will give out the receipt. Let say he wants to continue refuelling, he just has to pay from his own pocket.

The good thing about this kind of system is, the subsidy would be limited to a certain amount and will encourage those who would get the card to not waste their monthly allowance by using petrol excessively. Plus, this kind of system would also help to prevent gray market of petrol from existing.

However, the problem is with the card itself because who should get this card? Will it be based on the car or income? And how many card can a person gets? Assuming he has two cars that is registered under his name but one of the cars is for his wife, can he apply for two cards? Can his wife apply?

The government has been saying that it might use MyKad as the subsidy card. But, again, will the subsidy based on income or the type of car?

I cannot wait for the Prime Minister to announce parts of the plan on Wednesday. Hopefully, this time around, the government will actually come up with a brilliant idea.

P.S. Now, what car should I buy? :P

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