KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 30 (Bernama) — Suppliers are welcomed to play a part in the ‘Menu Rahmah’ initiative introduced by the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry (KPDN) alongside Malaysian Indian Restaurant Owners Association (Primas) and the Malaysian Tomyam Operators Association.
Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (Presma) president Datuk Jawahar Ali Taib Khan said the suggestion is to lend a helping hand to provide raw materials at a lower cost to restaurants that partake in the initiative.
“If there are suppliers who offer a price cut (on raw material) during the collaboration of Menu Rahmah, we can allocate the funds from companies to them,” he told Bernama.
Jawahar said Presma was working side by side with Primas in this initiative and will bring this suggestion to the KPDN Minister Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub before signing the memorandum of understanding (MoU) in the coming week.
KPDN will soon introduce ‘Menu Rahmah’, which offers meals priced at RM5 and below specifically for the hardcore poor which includes rice, chicken or fish and vegetables.
In addition, he said Salahuddin had suggested providing ‘Tabung Rahmah’ for each participating restaurant that can fund free food for the hardcore poor like the Asnaf community.
Haris Hanipah, 30, a factory worker said it’s a good initiative from the government when it comes to helping those in need since the increment of essential items is getting expensive in today’s market.
“This initiative seems like a short-term solution and the government should seek for a more in-depth approach to not only sustain the well-being of the community but also increase their household overall income,” he said.
However, an economist at University College i-CATS Kuching, Professor Datuk Dr Shazali Abu Mansor suggested KPDN introduce a food voucher initiative as it would be more practical when providing products and supplies for a household.
“As an example, a food voucher valued at about RM100 a month will provide each family with decent quantities of groceries and this can provide at least three meals a day for the family,” he said.
Shazali said through this suggestion the government could negotiate with established hypermarkets or supermarkets about providing food vouchers as part of their discount offers to potentially boost their sales revenue.
He said the ‘Menu Rahmah’ is more suitable for singles who mostly do not mind travelling to the restaurant for a meal but for a family, it will cause time and effort that will cost more than the valued meal due to transportation expenditure.
When asked regarding the selection of needy recipients for the food voucher, Shazali said data from the Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) can determine the eligibility of the recipient based on the size of the household, wages and locations.
Source: BERNAMA News Agency