HOW essential is cooking oil to the average household’s culinary needs? The degree of use varies with cultural appetite, but for the most part, everyone in Malaysia takes kindly to fried foods and dishes that require a measure of frying. This necessarily translates into quite a large swathe of the population consuming kilos worth of cooking oil. Naturally, with the partial removal of cooking oil subsidy, the transition period to market-determined prices is a little rocky: shelves go empty as panic buying and speculative hoarding occur; the new prices for other than the subsidised 1kg polybag can mean substantial increases and price differential between retailers; and, consequently, price of cooked foods is making a slow but certain increase.
Some non-governmental organisations have urged the government to come up with a pricing mechanism followed by strict enforcement so that wholesalers and retailers do not use the subsidy rationalisation as an excuse to hike the prices of cooking oil. With the subsidies removed, the prices should naturally be based on the market price for palm oil. But, the public is in the dark as to how the retail price is arrived at. Yesterday, the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry said it was identifying the mechanism. But, how it would be implemented is not clear. Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had said the ministry must first obtain public feedback on the issue. Indeed, this is necessary because at the end of the day, it is the consumers who will be direly affected.
Since the matter is of an urgent nature, the National Price Council could perhaps step in and monitor price levels closely to protect consumers. They have to ensure businesses do not take advantage to rake in excessive profits. Given that the price of petrol can be set by the government to reflect price fluctuations on the world market, why cannot the same mechanism be applied to cooking oil?
According to the authorities, too, despite the removal of subsidy for cooking oil, the commodity is still being smuggled into neighbouring countries because the new unsubsidised prices are said to be still low. It is then incumbent upon the authorities to exercise greater enforcement against profiteering and smuggling. There are laws against that. Charge wholesalers and suppliers who hoard cooking oil under the Control of Supplies Act 1961, and profiteers under the Price Control and Profiteering Act 2011. The former carries a fine of up to RM250,000, the latter up to RM1 million or five years’ jail or both. This should send a clear message to unscrupulous wholesalers and traders.
Authorities too, must point out that consumers wanting to purchase bottled cooking oil should compare prices. Consumers must be able to make the smart choice. Ultimately, it is the consumers that have to be vigilant against unfair price increases and report such instances immediately to the authorities.