
Sandakan firm probed for supplying subsidised cooking oil to unapproved premises
SANDAKAN: The authorities are investigating a company here for violating subsidised cooking oil distribution guidelines.
The Sandakan office of the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry discovered that a cooking oil repacking company had delivered 13 tonnes of subsidised cooking oil to unapproved premises.
The amount equals to 38 per cent of the company's total allocation of 34 tonnes of subsidised cooking oil.
The ministry's district enforcement chief, Azdy Zukkry John, said action had been taken against the Sandakan-based firm under the Control of Supplies Act 1961.
Documents, including invoices, sales receipts, stock records and controlled goods licences, were seized from the company.
He said since last August, cooking oil repacking companies were required to follow strict delivery guidelines to prevent leakage and misuse of subsidised goods.
"The ministry reminds all parties involved in the distribution of subsidised cooking oil to comply with government directives to ensure this aid reaches its intended recipients."
Under the Control of Supplies Act, offenders face fines of up to RM1 million, imprisonment for up to three years or both.
Companies can be fined up to RM2 million, with higher penalties for repeat offences.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Star
39 minutes ago
- The Star
No longer a luxury but a necessity
Aarti Verma is about to join the growing ranks of Indians installing air conditioning, scraping together savings to secure relief from sometimes deadly temperatures that can reach nearly 50˚C. A record 14 million AC units were sold in India last year, with a ninefold increase in residential ownership forecast by mid-century. That will give millions safer and more comfortable conditions at work and home. But it will also drive demand for electricity that is generated mostly by burning climate-warming coal, and increase the hot AC exhaust air expelled into the country's stifling streets. For Verma, the priority is securing some immediate relief. Her sales and marketing work means she must visit multiple stores a day, battling blazing heat. 'Coming home after a long day I want some comfort,' said the 25-year-old, who earns 30,000 rupees (RM1,500) a month and will pay 50,000 rupees (RM2,500) to install air conditioning in her spartan two-room home. 'Earlier I would sleep on the terrace, but these days it's so hot even in the night, AC has become a necessity,' she said in a poor neighbourhood of the capital Delhi. India is the world's fastest-growing AC market, despite only about 7% of households currently owning units. The boom could mean the world's most populous country needs to triple electricity production to meet demand, experts say. A customer carrying an umbrella as he visits a shop selling air coolers on a hot summer afternoon, at a market in Rawalpindi on May 30, 2024, amid the heatwave. — AFP The nation of 1.4 billion people is already the world's third-biggest producer of climate-warming greenhouse gases, burning through one billion tonnes of coal in 2024-25, according to a government statement. 'AC penetration across India is primarily driven by weather conditions, a growing middle class, favourable consumer financing options and widespread electrification,' said KJ Jawa, the India chief of Japanese AC manufacturer Daikin. He said that ACs are no longer regarded as a luxury indulgence, but as essential investments. Verma had to pay 13,000 rupees (RM657) as a down payment, with the rest divided over monthly instalments. 'I could have bought gold with that money which would have been a good investment but I gave priority to the AC,' she said. According to the meteorological department, 2024 was India's hottest year since thorough records began in 1901, with sizzling temperatures following a global pattern of extreme weather driven by climate change. A heatwave in May 2024 in New Delhi saw temperatures match the capital's previous record high: 49.2˚C clocked in 2022. The brutal summer heat can melt tarmac on the roads and puts millions of people at risk, with nearly 11,000 people dying due to heat stroke in India between 2012 and 2021, according to government data. Public health experts say the true number of heat-related deaths is likely in the thousands but because heat is often not listed as a reason on a death certificate, many casualties don't get counted in official figures. Ironically, the refrigerants inside AC units and the coal-generated electricity that powers them only exacerbate global warming. Widespread AC use also raises outdoor temperatures by expelling indoor heat. Verma cleaning an air conditioner installed inside her house in New Delhi. — AFP Studies – including by the World Health Organisation and UN-Habitat – show that the heat-generating motors inside AC units can themselves push up temperatures in urban areas by a degree Celsius or more. Before buying an AC, Verma relied on a traditional air cooler – a noisy fan-run device that blows cool air off water-soaked pads. But filling the cooler with water and making sure it did not become a haven for disease-carrying mosquitoes required great effort. Sales are brisk at Imperial Refrigeration in Delhi's old quarters, with a steady stream of customers braving the afternoon heat. Japsahib Singh Ahuja, 22, whose family owns the 50-year-old business, said sales have more than tripled in the last five years, thanks to first-time consumers and AC 'replacement cycles'. 'ACs these days don't last long, because there are so many pollutants in Delhi air that lead to corrosion and gas leakage from the equipment,' he explained. Delhi and the surrounding metropolitan area, home to more than 30 million people, consistently top world rankings for air pollution. Air conditioning will account for a quarter of India's emissions and nearly half nationwide peak electricity demand by 2050, according to the UN Environment Programme's Cool Coalition. But India has so far declined to sign up to the coalition's Global Cooling Pledge to reduce the sector's climate impact. Still, there are signs of hope, with Indians increasingly buying energy-efficient AC units, according to Ahuja. Energy-saving inverter ACs now dominate the market, and companies set a default temperature of 24˚C. 'Energy ratings are now mandatory,' said Ahuja. 'We will surely see long-term benefits.' — AFP


The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Dr Wee: Do your homework first
KUALA LUMPUR: Amending the Control of Supplies (Amendment) Act 2021 (Act 122) was never about regulating the use of subsidised liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), said Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong (pic). The MCA president, who referred to parliamentary hansards in 2021, said the amendments only gave wider enforcement powers to Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry officers. Dr Wee also said the amendments were debated by numerous MPs from both sides of the political divide before it was passed in Parliament in March 2022. 'Not a single MP mentioned the permit for three subsidised LPG gas cylinders or the use of commercial LPG for restaurants,' said Dr Wee in a video posted on Facebook on Sunday. Dr Wee said when then Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi was giving a Parliament reply in March 2022, he never mentioned the regulation on subsidised gas cylinders. 'Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, you were not at the Dewan Rakyat then, but you could have checked the Hansard. Do your homework before accusing me,' Dr Wee said. Armizan, the current Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister, had claimed that the law behind the enforcement, where eateries are required to use 14kg commercial LPG cylinders, was passed when Dr Wee was in the Cabinet in 2021. 'Maybe the regulation on the use of cooking gas in a subsidised gas cylinder not exceeding 42kg was an internal ministerial order, or an instruction from the administration,' added Dr Wee. Dr Wee said the law behind the enforcement where eateries are required to use 14kg commercial liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) was introduced since the 2000s, but it was never enforced until the first Pakatan Harapan government in 2019. 'In early 2019, the domestic trade and consumer affairs minister issued orders making it compulsory for restaurants, coffee shops and hawkers to use commercial LPG. 'But Chong Chieng Jen, who was the deputy minister, announced the postponement of that policy following public concerns over price hikes on food. He said food and beverages (F&B) operators are allowed to use subsidised LPG,' said Dr Wee. 'And now, they are trying to enforce it again under the Madani government in 2025.' He also demanded an apology from Armizan. 'You should apologise to me for your carelessness. As the spokesman of the people, I should have not been sacrificed,' he said. Meanwhile, Armizan shot back at Dr Wee, saying he was talking about the Control of Supplies (Amendment) Regulations 2021 during a press conference on June 5 and not the Control of Supplies (Amendment) Act 2021 which the MCA president was referring to. 'It is surely impossible to find the legal provisions that I was referring to because as I mentioned A, he was referring to Z,' said Armizan in a statement on Facebook yesterday. Previously, Armizan had said Ops Gasak is being carried out under three existing laws – the Control of Supplies Act 1961, the Price Control and Anti-Profiteering Act 2011 and the Control of Supplies (Amendment) Regulations 2021. Armizan had also said that the regulation was enforced during the previous administration in 2021, of which Dr Wee had served as a Cabinet Minister. Yesterday, Dr Wee had said though he served as a Cabinet Minister in 2021, he has never been involved in approving such regulations. On Thursday, Armizan had said that small and micro-scale F&B operators will be exempted from enforcement under the ongoing Ops Gasak Armizan said the Cabinet agreed to review the regulations on the use of subsidised LPG cylinders by such traders, after recommendations submitted by the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry. Ops Gasak, which began on May 1 and will run until Oct 31, is meant to curb illegal activities such as decanting (transferring gas from subsidised LPG cylinders to non-subsidised ones), smuggling and the misuse of subsidised LPG by medium and large-scale industrial sectors. Dr Wee had said Ops Gasak should have focused on large-scale operations and at the borders, and not on petty traders and hawkers. The crux of the issue, he said, is the smuggling activities at the borders and abuse of targeted subsidies. The Petaling Jaya Coffeeshop Association has also said a switch to commercial LPG by hawkers could lead to consumers paying higher food prices.


Borneo Post
2 hours ago
- Borneo Post
Sharp land tax increase puts financial pressure on Miri cooperative
Chong (third left) presides over the cooperative's AGM. MIRI (June 9): Koperasi Petani-Petani Miri Berhad has voiced serious concern over a sharp spike in its annual land tax, which has surged by 325 per cent – from RM440 to RM4,249 – posing a significant challenge to its 2025 financial planning. During its annual general meeting yesterday, secretary Oscar Chai revealed that the 2024 budget had only allocated RM1,000 for land tax, leaving a shortfall of RM3,249 due to the unexpected increase. 'The 2024 budget had only allocated RM1,000 for land tax. This unexpected increase left us a shortfall of RM3,429. 'In addition, Telekom Malaysia's rate hike in communication charges resulted in costs exceeding the initial budget by RM3602.10,' said Chai. The cumulative impact of these increases has led to a deficit of RM802.10, he highlighted. To address the situation, members of the cooperative unanimously agreed to adjust and subsidise the budget shortfalls for land tax and communication expenses. Meanwhile, board chairman Chong Vui Kuok proposed an 8.5 per cent dividend pay-out for the 2025 financial year – the highest in recent years – as a gesture of appreciation for members' continued support and contributions. 'In 2024, the cooperative recorded a total income of RM229, 722.00 and a net profit of RM67,433.00. 'This would not have been possible without the tireless support and trust of our members,' said Chong, adding that the board is committed to giving back to members through meaningful dividends. He further explained that the cooperative's income streams are primarily derived from dividends on investments in Bank Rakyat, agricultural land management fees, and rental income from shop lots and fixed deposits. In 2024 alone, it received RM91,439.15 in dividends from its RM554,207.00 investment in Bank Rakyat, he added. The proposed dividend distribution will be finalised upon member agreement and internal approval. Currently, the cooperative has 300 registered members managing over 300 acres of agricultural land. Beyond financial matters, the cooperative also reported efforts to upgrade and maintain critical agricultural infrastructure – including drainage systems, weed control, and road access. It also announced that new land lease agreements are being finalised to ensure fairness and improved returns for members managing larger land plots. These initiatives underscore the cooperative's strategic commitment to sustainable growth, financial prudence, and long-term member benefits. Koperasi Petani-Petani Miri Berhad land tax lead Oscar Chai