Chin Tong Says Remarks On BUDI95 Were Taken Out Of Context
PETALING JAYA: Deputy Finance Minister Liew Chin Tong has clarified that he never officially announced plans to reduce the fuel quota under the Budi Madani (BUDI95) programme to 150 litres as previously reported.
He said his remarks regarding the matter had been taken out of context, resulting in public misunderstanding.
According to Chin Tong, he was responding to questions related to the government’s strategy for dealing with potential global energy supply disruptions, but the published reports did not fully reflect the context of his explanation.
He stressed that he did not make any new policy announcement on behalf of the government and had never stated that reducing the BUDI95 quota to 150 litres would become official policy.
“What I explained was that BUDI95 is a useful mechanism because it allows the government to obtain comprehensive fuel usage data to better understand Malaysians’ daily travel patterns,” he said in a Facebook post.
He added that both the government and the public must prioritise efforts to ensure that the country’s petrol supply can last longer, especially amid uncertainties surrounding global fuel supplies.
According to him, building public consensus is important in supporting fuel-saving measures should such efforts become necessary in the future.
“I regret that my statement caused misunderstanding and I hope all parties can look at the full context of what I actually meant,” he said.
Earlier reports had quoted Chin Tong as saying that the BUDI95 quota could potentially be reduced to 150 litres as part of government efforts to safeguard domestic fuel supply security following the West Asia conflict.
He was reported to have said that although no timeline had been set, the measure could be considered because the BUDI95 system is capable of providing detailed fuel consumption data.
He also reportedly stated that such information would allow the government to adjust subsidies and fuel supply management more flexibly according to current conditions.
In addition, he noted that existing usage data showed that most Malaysians consume petrol at levels significantly lower than the current quota.
-wilayah.com.my
