The Malaysian government will discuss the request for an automatic moratorium on bank loan repayments to ease the financial burden on the people in light of the ongoing pandemic, prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said.
“The government is aware of the situation faced by the rakyat and will try to assist as best as possible,” the prime minister said in response to a question posed by Pontian MP Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan, reported The Star.
One suggestion raised in today’s Dewan Rakyat session by Port Dickson MP Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was for the government to inject an additional RM45 billion into the Covid-19 relief effort, and said that any implementation of a loan repayment moratorium “must be one that is meaningful.”
The Covid-19 relief funds provided through the RM45 billion injection must be carefully monitored to avoid the cash aid being used by its recipients to pay off their bank loans, Anwar added.
In response to Anwar’s query on what the government is doing to address the country’s decrease in household income by 10.3%, PM Ismail Sabri said that eight economic stimulus packages have been implemented since last year, when the Covid-19 pandemic saw unemployment increase to 5.3% last May.
The prime minister also acknowledged that incidences of poverty have increased to 8.4%, or 636,000 individuals and households last year, compared to 5.6% or 405,004 in 2019 due to the pandemic, the report said.
Of the eight stimulus packages introduced previously, among them was a moratorium on loan repayments to benefit seven million individuals, said Ismail Sabri, and added that the government had also spent RM3.14 billion for discounts on electricity bills for 8.8 million households, as well as RM106.8 million on 1,121,385 food baskets for distribution to the less fortunate.
Earlier in June this year, then-prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced a six-month loan repayment moratorium for all Malaysians across all income segments from B40 to T20, including micro entrepreneurs.
This was offered with automatic loan approval for individual borrowers, though approval of applications by companies such as small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are subject to review by banks, and not automatic. On June 29, finance minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said that the moratorium is not interest-free, but banks have been told to waive compounded interest and late payment penalty charges.
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
How is the bank going to survive
banks has enough cash reserves to sustain for years ahead. revenue is not affected as interest would still be chargeable.
every rakyat also got cash reserves under the mattress/pillow/piggy bank or in any hiding place at home. no worries. everything is coming up roses…
There’s an open secret in the global banking community that those ‘cash reserves’ are from illegal sources e.g. drug cartels, corrupt politicians, rogue dictators, etc.
Working in bank and too much moratorium is not the way to go
Tak bagi komplen, dah bagi lagi nak komplen. Piiirraahhhlahh!!
Jangan risau.. Keluarkan semua duit dari akaun bank & simpan saja di bawah bantal atau tilam..
You must be worried getting fat annual bonus cut?
Wat to do, on the right crying for gov financial assistance, on the left stil can buy new car.
But well done. At least kerajaan are doing assistance for the rakyat people
Well done Perihatin Nation!
easy talk.. the economy also depends on the health of the financial institution.. pray that there won’t be any run on the bank which can wipe out the rakyat’s savings..
apa boleh buat.. dia org asyik puji aje tapi sebenarnya tak cukup paham berapa pentingnya peranan institusi kewangan dlm ekonomi.