KPDN READY TO OPEN NEW PBP CONTROL POSTS TO ENSURE GOODS REACH REMOTE AREAS

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 11 (Bernama) -- The Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living (KPDN) is prepared to add new control posts to ensure the supply of essential and subsidised goods reaches remote areas that still face accessibility issues.

Its deputy minister, Datuk Dr Fuziah Salleh said that under the Essential Goods Distribution Programme (PBP), the opening of new control posts could be considered if an area is more than 15 kilometres (km) from the existing post and the price of controlled goods sold exceeds 50 per cent of the controlled price due to high logistics costs.

“This is the basic... after 15 km, another checkpoint can be established. If the price of goods in areas without a post increases by more than 50 per cent of the controlled price, it is eligible to be recommended for the establishment of a new goods distribution post.

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"KPDN is open to discussing with Members of Parliament and local representatives to examine areas that require additional PBP control posts," she said when winding up the debate on the Supply Bill 2026 (Budget 2026) for the ministry in the Dewan Negara today.

She answered questions from Senators Michael Mujah Lihan and Norhasmimi Abdul Ghani, who had previously raised the issue of PBP in remote areas that are difficult to access, leading to soaring logistics costs.

Fuziah said the government has allocated RM250 million to PBP, covering 120 distribution zones, 559 areas, and 820 points of sale nationwide, including remote areas in Sabah, Sarawak and Pahang.

She said that high logistics costs, including boat transport to the interior areas of Sabah and Sarawak, would cause the prices of controlled goods such as LPG, wheat flour, sugar, and packet cooking oil to skyrocket without government intervention through the PBP.

Addressing the concerns of some senators regarding the difficulty people are having obtaining packet cooking oil for wedding feasts or bulk use by small traders, Fuziah said the daily production contract for subsidised cooking oil has been set at 60,000 cartons per day and cannot be arbitrarily increased.

However, she said KPDN is prepared to consider the views put forward to ensure the needs of the people can be considered without compromising the integrity of the subsidy system.

Meanwhile, Deputy Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Aiman Athirah Sabu, in her winding-up remarks, stated that the ministry, through PLANMalaysia, will expand the development of the Malaysia Urban Observatory (MUO) analytical dashboard for flood disaster risk area detection to other states, starting next year.

She said that so far, the development of the analytical dashboard has been completed for Perak and Selangor.

"This dashboard analytics allows for the detection of areas potentially prone to floods and flash floods by identifying land use types such as construction areas, residential and commercial areas as a preventive and mitigation measure in collaboration with local authorities, state governments and the federal government," she said.

Aiman Athirah said the MUO system is integrated with agencies such as the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) to enhance information accuracy, with real-time data combined using machine learning methods to generate predictions based on patterns such as season, time, location and land use type.

Meanwhile, Deputy Digital Minister Datuk Wilson Ugak Kumbong said the government is developing the National Digital Trust and Data Security Strategy as the main framework to strengthen the governance and data security of the government and the public sector.

He said the strategy unifies the principles of digital security, accountability and trust, in addition to being an important component in Malaysia's efforts to build a safe and resilient AI ecosystem.

The Senate session will resume on Monday.

-- BERNAMA