GTP 2.0 - Prime Minister's Office of Malaysia

mINIstER’s FoREWoRD
taN sRI Dato’ hajI muhyIDDIN
hajI mohD yassIN
Deputy Prime minister of malaysia
As the Minister responsible
for the Addressing the Rising
Cost of Living NKRA (COL
NKRA), I am pleased to report
that our efforts over the past
year and a half have yielded
significant benefits for the
rakyat. Despite our relatively
recent inclusion into the GTP,
I believe that the intense efforts
we have put in have made us
one of the cornerstones of the
transformation process,
and I am excited about
greater change to come
in the next horizon.
We have also targeted students under
our initiatives in this NKRA by helping them
offset the cost tertiary education with our book
voucher initiatives as well as a direct RM100
schooling assistance.
Let me briefly summarise why the COL NKRA was
introduced into the GTP. The rising cost of living
remains a problem for the middle and lower
income groups due to the volatility of the external
environment. While the Malaysian Government
already plays a pivotal role in managing the
price of food and fuel, we felt there needed to be
a more targeted approach to delivering subsidies,
and hence we implemented this NKRA.
COL NKRA is a concerted effort implemented
by various government agencies to help ensure
that all layers of the rakyat, especially those most
needy, have better access to a decent standard
of living. We have approached the cost of living
issue from two directions: first, through direct
financial assistance to the rakyat that need it the
most; and second, through the introduction of
programmes such as Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia and
Klinik 1Malaysia to ensure affordable basic goods
and services are delivered.
In terms of assistance, we have distributed
RM2.09 billion to 4.18 million households in
GTP 1.0 under the Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia
programme, and the Government has already
agreed to further extend this programme to
encompass a greater proportion of Malaysians.
We sincerely believe that the RM500 aid packet
will do much help defray the cost of living.
We have also targeted students under our
initiatives in this NKRA by helping them offset the
cost of education with our book voucher initiatives
as well as a direct RM100 schooling assistance.
We must make education as accessible as possible
in order to encourage greater participation, and
we believe that our efforts in this area will do
much to help students and their parents.
Lastly, I would like to express my sincere
belief that this Government is committed to the
overall welfare of the rakyat. The GTP is meant
to be an inclusive programme for all Malaysians,
and we would not be able to deem it a success
if any were left behind. With the onset of GTP
2.0, I would like to declare this Government’s
commitment to meeting any challenges that may
arise, and that we will remain vigil to ensure that
the rakyat are not unduly harmed by the rising
cost of living.
38 Government transformation Programme—Annual Report 2012 Chapter three 39
Government transformation Programme—Annual Report 2012 Chapter three