KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 — The government’s concern in helping smallholders through the Monsoon Season Aid (BMT) is seen as being able to reduce the burden and cost of living faced by this group when the rainy season begins.
National Association of Smallholders Malaysia (PKPKM) deputy president Adzmi Hassan said the aid would also bring relief to the rubber smallholders as their sources of income would be affected due to reduced yields.
“Alhamdulillah, BMT applications have been open since yesterday and it is estimated that those who are eligible will receive RM800 each. It is understood that this aid will usually be distributed from November or at the latest at the end of February in stages.
“This assistance is a noble effort by the government to help smallholders nationwide and it is hoped that it can be continued as well as the amount be increased in the future, given that the cost of living is constantly rising,” he said when contacted by Bernama today.
In SELANGOR, Hulu Selangor, Gombak and Petaling District assistant agricultural officer of the Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (RISDA) Noor Zaidi Yak said the aid, which was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, would benefit about 1,300 smallholders registered with the agency.
“However, we are still waiting for the letter of instruction from the higher authority regarding the assistance that was announced and we will contact all smallholders to update their account numbers, which we usually do once a year,” he said.
Meanwhile, 50-year-old P. Vengadasamy, a part-time rubber smallholder in Hulu Selangor, said the aid would, to a certain extent, help those like him considering the floor price of scrap rubber is still below RM3.
“We also welcome other government assistance,” he said.
In KEDAH, smallholders registered under RISDA were relieved and grateful to the Federal government for the aid.
Forty-eight-year-old Anita Noh, from Kampung Tanah Rang, Jitra, said that as a rubber smallholder, she is grateful for the announcement by Ahmad Zahid because the BMT can help her to some extent when the monsoon season arrives.
“With the current situation, the uncertain weather and the price of rubber not being too high, smallholders like me are facing various problems. But this aid helps,” she said.
In KELANTAN, rubber tapper Abdullah Teh, 63, said the aid would surely help ease their burden, especially with the rising cost of living.
“During the monsoon season, it’s not possible to tap rubber. In Kelantan, the monsoon season is quite long, so we have to save money and do other part-time jobs to make ends meet. Sometimes, even if we can tap, the price of rubber is uncertain and greatly affects tappers like us,” he said.
Abdullah, who has been a rubber tapper for decades, said the RM800 aid showed that the government never neglected them, adding that it would provide them with a little relief.
In PAHANG, 38-year-old Norain Nordin, a smallholder in Temerloh, said the government’s decision in increasing the BMT rate from RM600 to RM800 was the right move in helping the people, although she hoped the price of rubber could also be increased.
In SABAH, 45-year-old rubber smallholder Joel Kalis, who lives in Tongod, hopes the assistance will be continued and channelled to the targeted groups.
Joel, who is a participant in the Sabah Rubber Industry Board (LIGS) group rubber planting project, welcomed the announcement about the assistance and even applied for it when applications opened yesterday.
Even the limited broadband coverage for online applications could stop him from seizing the opportunity and he thanked LIGS for ensuring no smallholder registered with the board missed out on the benefits.
“This assistance can reduce the financial burden of smallholders like me, especially when the weather is unpredictable with continuous rain that we can’t go down to tap rubber. With this RM800 aid, it will help a little in easing our financial burdens,” he said.
