petrol hike

I received three text messages telling me that fuel prices were going to go up and that I should go fill up now before it takes effect at midnight tonight.

*pffftt* was my response. I thought it was a hoax. Unfortunately my ignorance was confirmed on my way home as I passed by three major fuel stations along the main road. I saw a massive traffic jam and being Malaysian, the first thing that jumped into my mind was car accident.

Fortunately, it was just a bunch of ignoramuses who were all queuing up to fill up their gas tanks.

People, especially those who DID queue up to fill up their tanks. Let me ask you a question. Were you really using your heads? Unless if your tank was really running low, fine, you're excused. If not, what was the whole effing point of this?

Did you really think that by filling up your tank before the hike would ACTUALLY help you?

Did you really think that queuing up like that was NOT a waste of time?

Did you really think that it was worth it all?

Think about it. You fill up while the price is still at 1.92MYR and so what? It'll last you the rest of the week and then? YOU STILL HAVE TO PAY 2.70MYR per liter until the next hike! Live with it okay? Ignoramus bunch indeed!

Big deal, make a big fuss. Malaysians are really uneducated when it comes to things like this. Yeah, yeah everyone's a university graduate local or overseas, but so what? We are all being surpressed about national matters. We're not allowed to hold demonstrations. We're not that all allowed to voice out our opinions when we are against something. The government has had several articles printed in the newsies out saying that we should not take part in illegal demonstrations about the fuel hike. That makes me say in disgust "Oh really? Wow... we should all just sit back and smile and pat the government on the back and tell them how appreciative we are of them because they are looking out for us,"

Another example was during quite some time ago where one major English daily published on their front page "Crime Rates Go Up x%" and instead of being worried, I over heard a couple of people say "Wah, x% not bad hor? At least not xx%," Not bad? NOT BAD?!

Seriously. *sigh*

Yeah so now we will have to walk to work. Cycle. Jog. Take public transport! Yay! Public transport here is the BEST in the effing world.

Now I'm not saying that I agree about the price jump but my point here is that there is nothing much we can do about it.

Demonstrate? Sure why not. Then get warnings from the police while we hold picket cards and huge banners because we are disrupting harmony and peace not to mention promoting negative behavior which is very un-Malaysian.

Write to the major newspapers and voice our dissatisfaction? Sure why not. Like that's going to do much except to get a mental response from the reader going "Yeah man... this is so unfair,"

WTF... Life is always unfair. So live with it. I've attached an article about the petrol hike taken from the Malaysian MSN website below and inserted pictures that I took that evening.

Malaysian petrol price to jump 40 percent: PM

Malaysia said petrol prices will jump 40 percent from Thursday, as it moves to cut the spiralling cost of subsidies despite the prospect of public outrage.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the price hike could suppress economic growth and drive up inflation as high as 5.0 percent this year, from current levels of 3.0 percent in April.

"The cost of petrol and commodities has risen drastically and so subsidies have to be restructured," he told a press conference Wednesday.

"God willing I hope Malaysians will not demonstrate over this," he said, referring to fury over earlier hikes in a country where public transport is poor and most people are reliant on their cars.

Abdullah indicated that further increases were in the pipeline as Malaysia moves to completely abandon fuel price controls that would have cost 17.4 billion dollars this year -- about a third of the national budget.

"We are moving towards a market price regime but it has to be step by step, we cannot do it immediately," he said.

The new pump price for petrol will be 2.70 ringgit (0.84 dollars) and 2.58 ringgit for diesel. Petrol currently costs 1.92 ringgit, among the cheapest in Asia.

Abdullah is taking a major political risk in removing price controls even as he attempts to recover from disastrous March elections that dealt the ruling coalition its worst results in half a century.

Rising prices of food and fuel were a major factor in the ballot, which has triggered repeated calls for the premier to stand down.

"It is not an attempt to be popular, we have to think in the best interests of the people," Abdullah said.

Fresh protests over the price increases are very likely, said Mohd Hatta Ramli of the Islamic opposition party PAS who led anti-inflation demonstrations earlier this year.

"This is a massive hike and will create big problems for all and sundry. It will have a knock-on effect of increasing prices of all kinds of goods," he told AFP.

"We strongly feel that it is a severe misjudgement on the part of the government," he said. "In all probability, there will be a protest."

The subsidy cut was deeper than anticipated, said Yeah Kim Leng, chief economist with research firm Ratings Agency Malaysia.

"A price increase has been seen as inevitable and expected, but what happened is way beyond expectations," he told AFP.

"We were looking at 20 to 30 percent but 40 percent means the government must be trying to make up for not raising prices last year as well."

Under a revamped subsidy system, drivers of smaller vehicles will receive a cash payment of 625 ringgit to offset the rising cost, equating to subsidising some 800 litres of fuel.

Yeah said the rebates were not large enough to compensate for average use.

"It is clearly only a partial subsidy so we need to see how the lower-income group will be able to now absorb all this," he said.

Domestic Trade Minister Shahrir Samad said the pump price could rise as high as 3.00-4.00 ringgit when price controls are completely removed in August.

Abdullah indicated that economic growth, which the government had tipped at 5.0-6.0 percent this year, would be clipped.

"We will be able to manage at 5.0 percent this year," he said.

Inflation "might go up by 4-5 percent for the year", he added.

Some 13.7 billion ringgit would be saved by the new measure, including 1.7 billion ringgit in a windfall tax charged to independent power producers and palm oil growers who have benefited from rising oil prices.

As part of the subsidy reform, industry and power producers will be charged higher prices for gas from July. Electricity tariffs will rise 18 percent for householders, and 26 percent for commercial and industrial users.

Malaysia has already moved to ban sales to Thais and Singaporeans who make trips across the border to fill up their tanks with fuel that is substantially cheaper here.