KUCHING, June 4: A total of 147 cases were recorded by the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (KPDNHEP) during the implementation of the Festive Season Maximum Price Scheme (SHMMP) which was in effect from May 20 until June 3.
According to its minister Datuk Alexander Nanta Linggi, 32 of the cases involved overpricing of controlled items, and the remaining cases were for not displaying price tags on products, involving a total seizure value of RM18,718 and also compounds of RM308,500.
“From the 32 cases, 29 involved retailers, while three of the cases were wholesalers, which saw a total seizure of RM2,978 worth of items and also compounds of RM177,500.
“KPDNHEP also has received and investigated a total of 26 complaints throughout the whole period of the campaign involving not showing price tags (four complaints), not showing pink price tags (six complaints) and overpricing (16 complaints),” he said in a statement today.
He also noted that overall, the implementation of SHMMP for Hari Raya Puasa, Pesta Kaamatan and Hari Gawai Dayak was successful and should continue in the coming festive seasons in order to benefit the consumer.
Nanta explained that the SHMMP implementation for these three festive seasons mainly involved 16 price-controlled goods, which was expanded on May 22, 2020 to include 19 more goods, bringong the list to a total of 35.
“The determination of goods is made based on the assessment of the current demand of consumers, which is the consumers’ choice items during the Movement Control Order (MCO) and Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) period.
“The pricing of selected items was made according to current prices by taking into consideration the price changing factor, specifically for imported items which are affected by the origin country’s pricing, including currency exchange and the increased operating costs,” he added.
Nanta also disclosed that a total of 33,328 business premises were inspected involving 751 wholesalers and 33,478 retailers.
“It was found that the pricing for the 35 price-controlled goods are under control, and adherence from the wholesalers and retailers in the hypermarkets, supermarkets, grocery stores and wet markets on the ceiling prices is also good,” he said. — DayakDaily
