I spotted the above device while paying for a bottle of mineral water at the BHPetrol station in Kayu Ara last week. The logo was immediately recognisable to me. I had saw it before at the WCIT 2008 where this particular company ePetrol had displayed a petrol subsidy management system at the IT conference.
At the WCIT 2008 conference, ePetrol was demonstrating a way that fuel subsidies could be controlled and given to Malaysians only. In their implementation at that time, the petrol kiosk displays and charges the unsubsidised market price for petrol by default.
When an ePetrol-enabled MyKad is inserted, the subsidised price will be available. The petrol receipt (which I saw back at the event but for some reasons did not take pix of) shows both the unsubsidised price and the subsidy given.
When I asked the person at the petrol station’s cashier what this ePetrol thingy was for, she said it had been there for over a year and was used to accept MyKad petrol purchases.
Apparently ePetrol and EON Bank launched a pilot project in September last year for 250 EON Bank customers to use their MyKad to pay for fuel purchases at certain selected BHPetrol and Caltex stations. During the pilot trial, ePetrol gave the trial users a discount of 15 sen per litre up to 150 litres a month. You can probably consider the 15 sen discount effectively a test of a potential subsidy system.
ePetrol revealed at the WCIT 2008 that its system had a subsidy management system module. The module is able to identify MyKad holders entitled to fuel subsidies, manage the amount of subsidies allocated to each consumer, controlling the frequency of the subsidy provided (weekly limits, monthly limits, etc), and managing how the subsidy is provided (lump sum each month or a percentage of each purchase).
This would mean that a technical system for a MyKad-based subsidy system to be implemented has already been undergoing testing for over a year. Now one big question mark is for the government to finalise the nitty gritty details on how to determine who gets subsidies and how much subsidies they should get. The ePetrol system will be reprogrammed, implemented in all stations (this could possibly be a costly thing), and wala! You have a subsidy system set in place.
As an example, a single Shell card terminal at the pump is able to accept credit cards, Bonuslink cards, and also their Shell fleet cards. I’m not too sure on the technicalities but perhaps the existing chip-based readers at the kiosks could be reprogrammed to read the MyKad in addition to the credit cards, prepaid fleet cards and loyalty cards that they currently accept.
Right now, a MyKad is activated in the ePetrol system by registering the MyKad at an ePetrol registration kiosk. This will open an ePetrol account for the MyKad holder. There will be an option for the MyKad holder to link his ePetrol account with his bank account (tested with EON Bank in the trial period). This means ePetrol bank-linked MyKads can be used as an electronic cash payment at the petrol pumps if you do not have a credit card. No more walking from your car and queuing at the cashier before getting back to your car to pump your fuel in.
I think the system is by theory technically sound, with the weak points potentially being the quality of our MyKad (always cannot be read), and the communication link between the petrol station and the ePetrol system. The subsidy management module seems flexible enough and all that needs to be done is for the government to develop a fair system that has as little loop holes as possible.
Last we heard, the system was scheduled to be implemented in May 2010.
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
good for low income only maybe…middle income a little depressing with tax, price hike
Other than the sticker, that device looks like a very normal credit/debit card reader. You can see "sales", "void", and "settlement" on the screen, something you'd see on any other credit/debit card reader in many shops: hypermarkat, bookstores, clothes, etc.
It would be interesting to see if the scheme could be implemented effectively. It's time for the mykad to have some relevance.
This system or process effectively re-write the plastic payment industry in Malaysia – another 'probably' first in the world!
I bet there will be delays despite the pilot test with EON bank and BHP petrol – you're talking about one of the smaller bank with smaller customer base and limited BHP petrol stations.
How can this test pilot compare to close to 11 millions credit cards (before the exodus of people cancelling their card due to the RM50 service tax coming) and how many more of debit cards not to mention all the Mykad – phew…
But what I'm most keen to know is WHO IS BEHIND THIS ePETROL??? You guess it right – someone who is powerful enough to be suddenly having VISA, MASTER and AMEX under its feet!
Imagine the crazy sum of money this bugger going to pocket! Where would be the money goes, who is subsidizing who… sigh!!!
And guess what… a check on ePetrol website shows the COMPANY DIRECTORS page is missing… haaa….
There is whole loads of crabs behind a big stone!!!
http://www.epetrol.com.my/about-us/company-direct…
Will not work that well. Rich person will ask his driver to go fill up petrol using the driver's own mykad. Still get benefits.
Paul, can you setup a voting system and feature a question asking if people can entrust their credit/debit or banking information stored by ePetrol system?
Imagine biggest companies like VISA, MASTERS and AMEX have had past records of information theft despite their super-duper computers, do you really think ePetrol is up for storing and safe keeping our banking data…
Good idea, coolguru.
more corruption for the guy who is going to provide the gov with this devices
Hey paul what if i dont work in Malaysia, how do they give the subsidy? And how does college students get their subsidy????
how G determine the subsidy group will be tricky..
all walk of life like to claim for this..
plus with 3rd worlds country mentality..is not going to be easy..
Totally agree with mystvearn.
I'd probably do the same too! :)
anything goverment do is not good, not right and got somebody 'makan' duit…sighhhh…typical 3rd world malaysian always like that ..
Govt encouraging every single Msian to own at least one
credit card cos come 2010. Govt charging $50.00 for every credit card owned. Last count was Msia had 11 million credit card users which gives
Govt extra income of $500mil. Imagine the increase in Govt revenue if
it was amount was doubled. ;)
mystvearn said,
November 22, 2009 @ 10:36 pm
Will not work that well. Rich person will ask his driver to go fill up petrol using the driver’s own mykad. Still get benefits
—————————————
Rich people not bothered cos most of them either using company car
or using fleet petrol card.
Tourist opting for self drive tours most effected – Is this what we
want when we're busy promoting "Malaysia Truely Asia !!"
Anyone knows a country which uses this fool-proof system ?
What about military personal? Since they don't have Mykad. Kena bayar lebih jugak ke?
more way to generate funds to support some dumb ass company called proton. e-pay is just stating a true fact. corruption at its best, use people's money.
I hope the G would sort this out PROPERLY before initiating the scheme. if not, it's gonna be another burden to the already burdened fellow Malaysians.
At the same time, please rid of the cronies that seems to be more interested with their own pocket "ahem", than truly helping the raykat. If not, it's gonna be another half-baked scheme by the G, again, again, again…..
oh no. all my international friends at college gonna borrow my MyKad each time their cars running out of petrol. LOL
Well , looking forward to this , Even if foreigners may pay malaysians occasionally to use 'their' Mykad, at least money is goin into malaysian pockets
from the info any transaction will tracking by KPDNHEP and then if any
suspicious the computer will produce the result…..
From the result all suspicious transactions will checked by officers.either by KPDNHEP or IRBM ….or maybe by other department…
To ur info Gornment may penaltise the offencer by high compound n jail term…if any mismanagement happened..So any suspicous will catching n send to court
I thought new law impose maximum around RM20,000.00 n jail less than 2 years….Quite good bro….free food ma 2 years kikiki
One more from the new system ….motorcycle less than 250cc still able to fill the petrol with subsidies …when the petrol station operators setup new pumped which very strict controlled just to the type of vehicles ..purchase by plastic bottle or other will banned…
This to ease the rural areas people or urban areas…who using the motorcycle as medium of transportation.
Master Mind said,
November 23, 2009 @ 6:35 am
One more from the new system ….motorcycle less than 250cc still able to fill the petrol with subsidies …when the petrol station operators setup new pumped which very strict controlled just to the type of vehicles ..purchase by plastic bottle or other will banned…
This to ease the rural areas people or urban areas…who using the motorcycle as medium of transportation.
=============================================
Hey smartie… How about potong rumputman? They cannot buy thru bottle?
Think further la man…
yeah i agree with tokmoh. they would be wise to use existing networks for their device. since mykad can act as an ATM card, they may use it like a debit card system.
Mykad loaded with cash as a debit card / e-purse? This will surely give another reason for the petty thieves to snatch from you.
So, who get the contract? Cronies?
Well this country is getting mroe complex, and I'll say it's actually going in the right direction ;)
Again, how much gov need to spend to implement this system, how much money can be saved from fuel subsidy, how much time rakyat have to waste at petrol station to get their mycard verified?
only malaysians can use this…sounds racist
I can't really see how much this will actually save.
The time and money the government would spend to implement this system, and then to maintain it (Mastermind made a good point that the system needs policing) would amount to not an insignificant amount of money. I wonder which lucky bastards would be laughing to the bank.
This does nothing to increase the standard of living of the people or to educate people about the virtuals of conservation of resources.
I still wonder how the system will know if you qualify or not, and how much you can pump, and how if it possible to track who pumps for you…
This is really going to hurt the low-middle income earners, say household 3-5k/mth (as always). It would be interesting to see how/where they draw the line. Rich people wont care less, petrol is still cheap and most of them are run on company expense. And if they made the big chunk of low to middle income poeple qualify, what subsidy savings will the government have then?
I wish i have some demographic data to throw around, but I suspect, the whole project wil cost more than the savings.
Before this all condemning the government because the rich also enjoying the fuel subsidies…
Now almost everybody again condemning something that they NOT even implemented yet… but SUPPOSE to benefit the deserved?!
To tell you the truth the rich don't mind paying higher fuel price. Before this we the riches are enjoying the subsidies because there's NO system in place.
Now there's going to be… also bising? Typical poor people… you lot fast becoming our neighboring kiasu friends.
If we can pay $3000 monthly for car installment do you think we care not entitled for petrol subsidies? All we care is the government to introduce bio-diesel ASAP because that's what our fleets are going to be running on in the future.
for company, will it have their own rate? Or follow individual mykad?
hmm……
this is a flawed system. uncivilized rich people will find a way to use other people card. while the middle earners will struggle because they 50 – 100 ringgit over the limit.
The Noble Proton Bashers said,
only malaysians can use this…sounds racist
_________________________________________
racist?? who pay the most tax to IRB? "rakyat didahulukan bukan rakyat asing didahulukan"
it is not racist.
We malaysians (ALL MALAY, CHINESE and INDIAN) pay alot more when we study in UK than the locals.
Is that racist?
err… chauffeur driven car can get subsidised petrol as well?
the idea is noble. the implementation is to be judged. when it comes to petrol, people can get emotional, if not implemented right, gov may go down with it. among issues i am afraid will happen
– machine cannot read mykad
– offline (atm, credit card, internet..even astro also happen right)
– machine rosak
– duplicate mykad. suddenly by end of month, my subsidy use up by other people in sabah while im in penang.
– …
what if currently i'm rich with income more than RM20k per month, and goes broke the next month. Will i get the subsidy immediately to fuel my 'kapchai' C60 or will have to wait for court to finalise my bancruptcy status which may take several years to settle. Is that fair? What if vice versa?
I would use my mother's mycard. Or else my wife's. Or else my daughter's mykid. Or else I would just borrow from my low income neighbour. Nice system.
P2 said,
November 23, 2009 @ 11:33 am
what if currently i’m rich with income more than RM20k per month, and goes broke the next month. Will i get the subsidy immediately to fuel my ‘kapchai’ C60 or will have to wait for court to finalise my bancruptcy status which may take several years to settle. Is that fair? What if vice versa?
—————————————————————
That's why it remains IF… because you're NOT earning $20k/mth. People who earned $20k/mth is not stupid and thinks better than that. No offense but that's the fact.
>>>
epol said,
November 23, 2009 @ 11:23 am
the idea is noble. the implementation is to be judged. when it comes to petrol, people can get emotional, if not implemented right, gov may go down with it. among issues i am afraid will happen
– machine cannot read mykad
– offline (atm, credit card, internet..even astro also happen right)
– machine rosak
– duplicate mykad. suddenly by end of month, my subsidy use up by other people in sabah while im in penang.
————————————————————-
^ see… they are people who still can make good comment… good to you 'epol'
Question
How much subsidised Petrol will an averege Malaysian be allowed to purchase?
Scenario 1
Say Assuming 300 Litres a month flat.
1. Will this 300 Litres a month be enough for those who have to commute or to Balik Kampung?
2. Why then is the rich and the poor receiving the same amount of subsidised petrol?
3. Will this 300 Litres a month be enough for those who have to commute or to Balik Kampung?
Scenario 2
Rich get less cos they can afford it and poor get more cos they can't – Based on cc
1. The poor uncle who bought a old bigger cc car many2 years will suffer compared to the Yuppies who change car (although) smaller cc. Is this fair.
2. Ppl who drive a RX8 enjoy more subsidised petrol compared to ppl who drive a Waja. Is this fair
3. PPl who drive a Superbike (say 600cc or even 1000cc) enjoy more subsidised petrol compared to ppl who drive a MyVi. Is this fair
The scenarios can go on and on like based on age of vehicle, price but how to keep track. The best is just to float the price of petrol and then lower the price of car and all related parts. That way, its fairer to all.
Why want to make life tough? Why want to implement this and pay more money for that and create regulations for this etc….
No Subsidy is ok. But no subsidy also should mean no sales car tax (not road tax). What you want to buy is your problem.
This way, no additional control required.
Yeah, this is another way to screw the tax paying middle class. What stupid reason to say higher cc means the person is rich and as such, he can pay higher fuel prices. I am driving a 2003 Cefiro 3.0 bought for 80K 3 years ago because I could not afford to buy a brand new Camry or Accord. My car is worth only 50K now and I pay 2K plus of roadtax every year. I suppose some half baked government servant in charge of this will classify me as rich?
Cordoba1,
"I am driving a 2003 Cefiro 3.0 bought for 80K 3 years ago because I could not afford to buy a brand new Camry or Accord."
Could not afford to buy a brand new Camry or Accord?
Dude, most of us have to take a 9-year loan to buy a P1/P2…to us you're rich.
Why is my income tax subsidising someone with such a big cc car?
BTW, I drive a car from the last century because I can't afford a car from this one yet.
People can exchange MyKad to get subsidise fuel.
But if the tracking goes to car ID (such as plate number plus car model) it would be more transparent though…
This system is so open to abuse I'm not going to waste my time to list all the loopholes.
Why can't the govt use existing systems? For example, our income tax. Any subsidy will obviously be targeted to those with low income, right? Just add another line for rebates for fuel subsidy. If your income is below a certain level, you get to claim your fuel subsidy directly.
This will cut out unnecessary middle men and no need to install any new gadgets. Of course, it will 'hurt' since you have to pay up front first but isn't a little pain worth it to ensure correct allocation of fuel subsidy?
No more wastages of public funds!
having the quota on subsidy is going to be painful for ppl whom travel inter-state like me..
but i think it is time for ppl to know that the country cannot forever giving out subsidies. but the government should do something about helping the people before coming up with stupidest of ideas to supposedly help ppl.
the public transportation has been stagnant for many years now..
when we had our first train. we were pioneers. not even our Singapore neighbor has it. we are so stuck in the past.
KTM cannot even have a timely schedule. and when it rains, the service is almost non-existence.
LRT? when it first was brought into Malaysia. i have to say i was really proud. but after 10 year.. its still the same bloody train and the rotten handles and the service is relatively below par. the coverage for LRT is very poor.
our bus services? abysmal..
the government can get their money back it they wanted to. look at the amount of MARA scholars whom did not pay back their loans.. billions every year wasted as these idiot are not thankful that they were given loans.
PTPTN as well. why isnt the government clamping down on these defaulters?
our government can use this money to improve on public transportation.
RM50 on a credit card for next year amounting to few hundred millions are peanuts compared to the education loans provided but unclaimed.
not mentioning the khursus "datuks" attend overseas. 6 star hotel, first class flight.. hmmm. i want to attend khursus too..
The proposed system to reduce fuel subsidies is good BUT before qualify it must going through thorough examination, testing in order to qualified as fool-proof system, not benefiting the company and poor rakyat become poorer and those not eligible also entitle our subsidies. Even country like Iran having this system; foreigner pays more than citizen.
First and foremost, we should ensure no pendatang haram got MyKad.
2. Only our rakyat with vehicle entitled the subsidies- not illegal Indonesians (i ever come across an Indonesian got our MyKad almost ten years ago). Remote case?
3. RTD, IRB, Bank Negara should link the MyKad's owners info:-income, tax, vehicle etc. So, we can iron out the issue of misusing ePetrol. Perhaps, no more Thais rushing to fill up at our borders
4. God willing we can inculcate fuel saving culture and government should tax any cars based on FC rather than cc
Ummmm….having said that, what happen to the Petronas? They love more people buy their gas rather than fewer people and fewer volume of gas.
Many unnoticed: when we have relatively poor transportation system (or perceived so) we'll buying more cars, big or small, use highways, jammed (also better for gas station owners), RTD can collect more handsome registration number fees, tender for fancy numbers, and many more entities benefit from our 'system'.
Thus, government should compensate this situation by introducing more effective policies that able to cushion the impact on most rakyat. W'e're slapped with so many taxes, we're enjoying one of the most expensive car in the world with our GDP per capita and I afraid it's too much to bear.
Authorities must proof to the rakyat that they're concern with rakyat.
The proposed system to reduce fuel subsidies is good BUT before qualify it must going through thorough examination, testing in order to qualified as fool-proof system, not benefiting the company and poor rakyat become poorer and those not eligible also entitle our subsidies. Even country like Iran having this system; foreigner pays more than citizen.
First and foremost, we should ensure no pendatang haram got MyKad.
2. Only our rakyat with vehicle entitled the subsidies- not illegal Indonesians (i ever come across an Indonesian got our MyKad almost ten years ago). Remote case?
3. RTD, IRB, Bank Negara should link the MyKad's owners info:-income, tax, vehicle etc. So, we can iron out the issue of misusing ePetrol. Perhaps, no more Thais rushing to fill up at our borders
4. God willing we can inculcate fuel saving culture and government should tax any cars based on FC rather than cc
Ummmm….having said that, what happen to the Petronas? They love more people buy their gas rather than fewer people and fewer volume of gas.
Many unnoticed: when we have relatively poor transportation system (or perceived so) we'll buying more cars, big or small, use highways, jammed (also better for gas station owners), RTD can collect more handsome registration number fees, tender for fancy numbers, and many more entities benefit from our 'system'.
Thus, government should compensate this situation by introducing more effective policies that able to cushion the impact on most rakyat. W'e're slapped with so many taxes, we're enjoying one of the most expensive car in the world with our GDP per capita and I afraid it's too much to bear.
Bottom line: Authorities must show to the rakyat that they're concern with them.
Well, actually, i agree with using MyKad to buy petrol. This will prevent outsiders from buying gasoline at local price. Perhaps G can postpone the extraction of subsidy gradually compare to pulling it completely. I believe this is what G is doing. But i dont know, coz we need to wait and see I wont comment on this issue until it is implemented. But i have strong objection on NAP on the issue of spare parts. G need to abort this plan as there are hundred of thousand jobs that will be affected. We dont want anymore jobs or business losses during this economy situation. It is best to let spare parts companies close by itself due to lack of demand rather than trying to stop something that affect employment and confidence of people. Please try to implement RAKYAT DIDAHULUKAN rather than MATLAMAT DIUTAMAKAN…
What happens to those Malaysian man married to foreign wife and she has family car (send kids to school etc mah) but no MyKad to get ePetrol? Does the government intend to tell this lot of people that only the husband can get the subsidy petrol but not the rest of his family? Mana boleh ini macam bang? Husband pays full income tax but wife and kids cannot get subsidy for family car to fill up on ePetrol because wife has no MyKad? Does the government have any plans to address this group of people at all?
hmmm…..sooner or later there will be no privacy for us as G will know our whereabout……..
Why is the govt allowing Spore cars to pump subsidized petrol in JB ? How much are we subsidzing them ? But till now no action taken by the govt. Not to mention the same problem at the border with Thailand and Brunei.
Whu is the govt taking NO action ?
Why argue when every day , foreign registered cars are pumping our subsidized petrol at the border ? Eg : Johor Bahru , Perlis , Miri.
Every day i see many Spore registered cards laughing all their way in the petrol station and some of them shake their car in order to maximise the amount of petrol they can pump. Can someone inform the almighty Govt to stop this ? We are making ourselves stupid.
Why argue when every day , foreign registered cars are pumping our subsidized petrol at the border ? Eg : Johor Bahru , Perlis , Miri.
Every day i see many Spore registered cards laughing all their way in the petrol station and some of them shake their car in order to maximise the amount of petrol they can pump. Can someone inform the almighty Govt to stop this ? We are making ourselves look stupid.
Why should taxpayers subsidize NON-TAXPAYERS? Sorry to be offensive, only about 5% of Msian pay their income tax annually as heard from BFM radio before. So why are these 5% taxpayer partly subsidize the 95% of non-taxpayer!!!!!!
talking about tax..not all goverment income coming from your taxes actually….even if bought kancil also paid tax……what so proud about your 5% anyway.heck you even might paid only 1000 per year.somemore want to deprive the needy.what a capitalist mind!!!!!!!
Liew said,
November 23, 2009 @ 10:23 pm
Why is the govt allowing Spore cars to pump subsidized petrol in JB ? How much are we subsidzing them ? But till now no action taken by the govt. Not to mention the same problem at the border with Thailand and Brunei.
Whu is the govt taking NO action ?
HI LIEW,
I don't think it's correct to always use Singapore and/or Singaporeans as a bashing kid for all your grievances.
I'm a Singaporean and our cars must comply to the 3/4 tank rule before being allowed to leave Singapore for JB. How much do you think we can benefit from your cheaper subsidized petrol? Use your brain (if you still have it) to compute.
Besides, most of us are not going into JB solely just for fuel. We also contributed a lot to the state's tourism dollars. Read below which is extracted from your own newspapers:
I trust you to be mature enough not to sprout nonsense again in future without actual facts and figures.
"HIGHER EARNINGS FROM TOURISM THIS YEAR
2009/11/25
JOHOR earned RM1,149 million from foreign tourists in the first six months of this year.
State tourism and domestic trade committee chairman Hoo Seong Chang said Johor's tourism revenue for
the whole of this year is expected to exceed last year's.
In the first six months of last year, 7,018,282 foreign tourists visited Johor.
"For the same period this year, Johor received 7,351,710 visitors."
In his reply to Datuk Sulaiman Taha (BN-Tenang), he said based on the 4.7 per cent rise in tourist
arrivals, tourism earnings this year were also likely to be higher.
"The single largest group this year came from Singapore, with 6,043,618 people.
"Then there were tourists from Indonesia (401,882), China (202,669) and the Philippines (118,215)."
Other tourists who visited the state included those from India, Japan, Thailand and the United
Kingdom.
Cheong Chin Liang (BN-Bukit Batu) asked if the ministry kept a database on whether the tourists were
repeat or one-off visitors.
"Is there a way to find out how often they visit?"
Hoo said although he did not have the information on hand, he was certain they had visited Johor more
than once.
"I can say with confidence that they are repeat visitors."
Source: http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/articles/2…
Hi Winners
1. If you observe the Shell petrol station on the left after you leave the JB CIQ , one can observe that many foreign registered cars to go straight to the Shell station after the CIQ. If the car has petrol > 3/4 of the tank , then why should the car pump more petrol ? Please observe.
2. Do you know there are cars that are modified with :
a) two petrol tanks
b ) petrol tank needle that can be manipulated
3. I certainly do not want your tourism dollars as i feel that the cost of living is high in JB due to this. I do not get any benefit from your tourism dollards.
4. If you plan to come to JB for tourism , please do not use our subisdized petrol if your car still have enough petrol to arrive back home.Walk the talk.
I believe that you will practice what you preach.
5. The tourism dollars benefit Johor the most .But all of us in the country pay tax and subsidized the petrol. So what do i tell my fellows in KL , Penang , Sarawak , Sabah , etc ? That they benefit your tourism dollars ?
6. I believe many that many that come over buy lots of groceries, food , milk powder , personal accessories etc that are cheaper compared over the causeway. So if you believe in contributing tourism dollars , please travel around and do not buy groceries etc.
Thank you.
Hi Liew, below are my views:
Hi Winners
1. If you observe the Shell petrol station on the left after you leave the JB CIQ , one can observe that many foreign registered cars to go straight to the Shell station after the CIQ. If the car has petrol > 3/4 of the tank , then why should the car pump more petrol ? Please observe.
Winners: Can you substantiate with the amount of petrol which they had pumped into their tanks? From my observation, quite a number of them are there also for the car wash, which I admit is cheaper than in Singapore. Do not forget that there are still others who proceed onward to northern Johor (Muar, Kluang,etc), Malacca and Kuala Lumpur. Isn't it wise and convenient to top up before that long trip, despite already having 3/4 tank? The next time you are there, do a statistics to see how many of those Singapore vehicles will do a U-turn back to Singapore immediately after refueling. Or, don't even need to do that, just stand at the traffic junction below the bridge at the Tebrau Highway and see how many Singapore registered vehicles are taking the U-turn there. Of course you cannot blame us for using Malaysian petrol if most of it will be re-used for traveling within Malaysia itself. Malaysia is unlike Singapore whereby you can cover the whole of Singapore with just a tankful of petrol.
Let me tell you that other than the odd hours (after midnight, pre-dawn hours, etc), all the Singapore registered cars prior to leaving Singapore will be individually checked by an officer on its fuel gauge. Of course, there are few cases of cheating like modifying the fuel gauge or trying to pass off with ignorance. However, the enforcement officers are very strict and will not give a second chance if you are caught with less than 3/4 tank of petrol because there are already several signposts along our highways and arterial roads to remind the Singapore drivers to top up to 3/4 tank before arriving at the Singapore immigration. There was one time when my Japanese colleague had to rush to Johor for an appointment and he had forgotten to top up his tank. Eventually, he was slapped with a S$200 fine. They won't even give a second chance to an expatriate, less to a local. With our self-imposed 3/4 tank rule, stiff penalty for failing to comply, causeway tolls at both Malaysian and Singapore ends, 1 hour (or more) of traffic jam during peak hours, etc, do you think it's still worthwhile to go to JB just for refueling alone?
2. Do you know there are cars that are modified with :
a) two petrol tanks
b ) petrol tank needle that can be manipulated
Winners: As already explained above. In any situations, there are always a few black sheep, but it's not worthwhile because the penalty is heavy if caught. Are you also aware that if the customs officers were to note that your vehicle is suspected of traversing abnormally frequent, they will use a rod to knock on your fuel tank below the vehicle. A less than half tank will definitely reveal a hollow sound and you're as good as dead. Two petrol tanks are only applicable to those Thai vehicles at the Bukit Kayu Hitam border. I have no knowledge of any Singapore cars being caught with such an illegal modification.
All vehicles leaving Singapore are being digitally photographed and checked on their vehicle registration number against their database for stolen vehicles. It will also reveal the last date and frequency of travel for that particular vehicle via the checkpoint. If they will suspect anything abnormal, the passport control officer can immediately inform the officer who is checking for the 3/4 tank compliance ahead with their walkie-talkie and you're as good as dead again if you will commit any wrongdoing. So, do you think it's worth the risk?
3. I certainly do not want your tourism dollars as i feel that the cost of living is high in JB due to this. I do not get any benefit from your tourism dollards.
Winners: You are just being narrow minded. I do agree that things in Johor Bahru are more expensive, but don't forget that it's operating like the capital of Johor state. Go up north 20 km or more (Kempas, Kota Tinggi, etc), things are cheaper. They are even back to their normal prices in places like Muar, Kluang, Segamat, etc. Similarly, when in Kuala Lumpur and Malacca city, do you think that the cost of living in those areas are cheap? Think again. That's the price for staying within the city boundary and you can't escape from this fact. It is the same for every city in this planet, be it Bangkok, Jakarta, Manila, Guangzhou, Shanghai, etc. You may not be in the retail trade yourself, otherwise, you wouldn't be saying that you don't benefit from the tourism dollars. However, your other family members and relatives may indirectly be related because they may be working in the shops and service industries in the city and shopping centres. Don't be myopic. Look ahead with a longer horizon and have a wider perspective if you want your country and your future generations to progress.
4. If you plan to come to JB for tourism , please do not use our subisdized petrol if your car still have enough petrol to arrive back home.Walk the talk.
I believe that you will practice what you preach.
Winners: I never said that we don't use your subsidized petrol. I only said that we don't benefit much due to our self-imposed 3/4 tank rule. Like I said before, you cannot deny us from using your petrol if they are to be used for traveling within Malaysia itself. How can you expect me not to refuel if my trip is to Malacca and back?
In your earlier post, you mentioned about fuel pilfering in Miri. I think you are greatly mistaken because fuel prices in Brunei have never been more expensive than Malaysia. So, why do the Bruneians need to purposely refuel in Miri? Don't you think that it should be the other way round instead?
5. The tourism dollars benefit Johor the most .But all of us in the country pay tax and subsidized the petrol. So what do i tell my fellows in KL , Penang , Sarawak , Sabah , etc ? That they benefit your tourism dollars ?
Winners: Isn't Johor part of the federal state of Malaysia? How the wealth is being distributed is of course beyond yours and my control, just like in Singapore. This issue will be delving into the Malaysian politics and I do not want to get myself involved. Do note that with the pending implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in Malaysia in the near future, you'll even have to pay more for your daily expenses. There's no escape unless you go reside in a cheaper country where your currency is stronger than your host's.
With the Iskandar Malaysia (IM) taking shape, the state of Johor will need lots of foreign direct investments (FDIs) in order to be successful. Singapore is amongst the top 3 investors. Do you mean to tell those foreign investors (especially from the Middle East, Japan, China, etc) not to live in Johor and cause your daily expenses to increase? Not possible right? Even without us Singaporeans, eventually, the cost of living in Johor will increase with each successions. That is how society works and progress and it just can't be avoided. Some very good examples are Beijing and Shanghai, where just 10 years ago, living expenses were so much cheaper than today. Your PM Najib is now doing a very good job by going to the Middle East, China and the US to promote Malaysia as an investment country. This is what all good leaders should do for the progress of the country.
6. I believe many that many that come over buy lots of groceries, food , milk powder , personal accessories etc that are cheaper compared over the causeway. So if you believe in contributing tourism dollars , please travel around and do not buy groceries etc.
Winners: In that case, we might as well stay at home. I do admit that we have an advantage due to our stronger currency. However, do note that not everything in Malaysia is cheaper than in Singapore. Trust me, most of the imported goods in Malaysia are practically more expensive than in Singapore, even after the currency conversion. Price controlled items like milk, sugar, rice, etc, are indeed cheaper than ours. But again, your custom officers will confiscate them if we are caught buying in bulk quantities of these items back to Singapore.
In conclusion, I would say that the people and governments of Malaysia and Singapore should not bear any hatred but to combine our talents and manufacturing forces to compete against China and the forthcoming India. Those 2 giants are our utmost fear in the future, in terms of their strong direct competition with ASEAN in trade and economics. We cannot compete with them individually, but with a combined strength and determination, we do stand a better chance, especially together with Indonesia, which is the largest economy in ASEAN. Trust you to agree with my some of my above views. Do have a wider perspective and sometimes, we really have no other choice but to change ourselves, due to external forces.
Thank you.
guys. arguing over 20 liters of petrol? so like kids comparing who's dad is better..
haha
modified tank for a few liters of petrol? dude.. is that necessary?
tourism is good. period. malaysians welcome it. i am. please come. help the economy. if you wanna blame some one for causing the prices to go up. blame the ppl who raise it for being greedy.
gone be the days where ppl are doing honest living just happy with their cloths.
just my two cents..
Please continue! loven where this argument is going.
who owns durian? malaysia singapore? enjoy.
LOL, I presume Liew to be a retiree who is very much worried about the diminishing value of his retirement fund with each passing year due to the country's inflation rate and ever increasing cost of living.