Rundi
KUCHING (Aug 4): The electricity and water supply agencies have put in place additional initiatives to help those facing difficulties in settling their bills during this time of Covid-19 pandemic.
In stating this, Minister of Utilities Dato Sri Dr Stephen Rundi says this is being done despite the average tariffs for water and electricity supply in Sarawak are already amongst the lowest in Malaysia and the surrounding region.
According to him, the additional initiatives include discounts on bills, implemented under Sarawakku Sayang Special Assistance (BKSS) 6.0 package, which would continue to be in force until this December.
On electricity supply, he said consumers are eligible for discounts ranging from five to 25 per cent under the BKSS, which should be reflected in their bills.
These discounts, meant to benefit 647,000 customers from the domestic, commercial and industrial sectors, would cost the Sarawak government RM166.8 million over a period of six months (July-December 2021).
“The discounts are expected to cost the Sarawak government about half a billion ringgit (RM583 million) in total from when they were introduced in April 2020, and up to December 2021.
“Customers who still have difficulty in paying their bills may utilise Sarawak Energy Bhd’s (SEB) flexible plan for a more affordable monthly payment,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Dr Rundi pointed that the state government had lowered the electricity tariffs in Sarawak twice in the past few years, and SEB’s domestic customers were enjoying average tariffs that were about 40 per cent lower than those in Peninsular Malaysia.
He said the state government strove to ensure that Sarawakians would continue to benefit from ‘a fair, equitable and efficient tariff structure’, reflecting the real cost of supply to various customer groups.
On water supply, Dr Rundi said the people would be eligible for discounts ranging from 10 to 25 per cent off their water bills, which should benefit close to 647,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers.
“The discounts on water bills totalling RM32.1 million, over the period from July to December this year, would be borne by Sarawak government,” he said.
Dr Rundi acknowledged that the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic had badly affected all aspects of the people’s lives, with an even greater impact on those whose livelihoods had been disrupted by various restrictions on movement.
He said in view of that, the Sarawak government had taken a proactive and caring approach by extending various forms of assistance via the BKSS, which complemented the aid packages provided by the federal government.
“The implementation of the previous five phases of the BKSS has cost the Sarawak government a total of RM3.1 billion, but it’s necessary in cushioning the impacts of the pandemic on the people.”
He said the state government remained positive and hopeful that with the intensive roll-out of the vaccination programme, coupled with the embarking of the post-Covid-19 development strategy, Sarawak would begin on its road to recovery soon.
from Borneo Post Online https://bit.ly/3ilX7ZN
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