The Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living (KPDN) took note of a press report published in the Sinar Harian newspaper using the title ‘Kadang-kadang turun, tapi selalunya naik’ (‘Sometimes it goes down, but it usually goes up’). The chosen title certainly invites anxiety among readers and end users and the report given unfortunately does not use correct and up-to-date data.
KPDN would like to take this opportunity to clear up some of the confusion arising from the report and the title while thanking the reporter who cited that the standard and super chicken prices are included under the control prices set by the Government since October 12, 2022 and is still in effect to this day. Standard Chicken Price is RM9.40/kg and Super Chicken Price is RM10.40/kg in Peninsular Malaysia.
KPDN Deputy Minister Fuziah Salleh, in a statement today (Aug 29), said it is an offense under the Price Control and Anti Profiteering Act (AKHAP) 2011 if a trader sells standard chicken and super chicken above the Control Price that has been set. Consumers and journalists are encouraged to make complaints on various KPDN official complaint channels if they have information about traders who sell standard and super chicken above the control price.
If convicted under AKHAP 2011, the individual can be fined (section 18) not exceeding RM 100,000 or imprisoned for a period not exceeding 3 years or both. And a second or subsequent offence, a fine not exceeding RM250,000 or imprisonment for a period not exceeding 5 years or both. If the offense is committed by the company, the fine will not exceed RM500,000 and the second or subsequent offense will not exceed one million Malaysian Ringgit.
In relation to that, based on the monitoring of the Power Amplifier and more than 900 KPDN Price Monitoring Officers every day involving almost 1,500 premises including Wet Markets, Hypermarkets and Supermarkets, Mini Markets and Retail Stores throughout Malaysia, the data obtained by the KPDN as a result of price monitoring actions across the country shows that in the last 2 weeks, from 12 August 2023 until 26 August 2023, the average price of standard chicken in peninsular Malaysia showed a decrease of 0.33%. The average price of standard chicken in the Peninsula on 12 August 2023 which is RM8.73/kg decreased to RM8.70/kg on 26 August 2023. While in Sabah and Sarawak also showed a decrease in the average price of 0.12% each (Sabah) which is from RM 11.30/kg to RM11.29/kg and down by 0.47% (Sarawak) which is from RM10.28/kg to RM10.23/kg for the same period.
KPDN hopes that journalists contact KPDN to get accurate and up-to-date data to avoid confusion and possibly cause anxiety among consumers. The article refers to the CPI statistics for February 2023 released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) and compares it with data for the same month in 2022 while the latest data up to July 2023 has already been released by DOSM.
For information, the average price of standard chicken in the market in February 2023 was stable at the control price and a downward trend began to be seen from July to August 2023 with the lowest average price recorded on 4 August 2023 in the Peninsula which was RM8.11/kg. In parallel with that as well, the inflation rate continues to subside along with the Consumer Price Index being in a downward trend.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to call on users to be smart users by comparing prices first before shopping. For that, users are advised to use the PriceCatcher application to get the latest information on the prices of daily necessities at sales premises in your area.
“Consumers can also play a role and use consumer rights in channelling information and complaints if traders are found to be disobedient to price controls, Fuziah said.
If a trader is found to be disobeying the price control, then the user can also make a complaint to the KPDN through the following methods; WhatsApp 019-279 4317 / 019-848 8000; Portal e-Aduan KPDN http://eaduan.kpdn.gov.my; Call Centre 1-800-886-800; E-mail ([email protected]); Ez ADU KPDN; or call 03-8882 6088 / 6245, the deputy minister added.
