CASH aid announced under the Budget 2022 are also available to individuals who are not married, Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said.

Writing on Facebook, he said many have questioned why the Bantuan Keluarga Malaysia (BKM) was not extended to single people.

“(The BKM) is available (to single people). The budget speech is just one part of the various initiatives that are available to Keluarga Malaysia,” he said. 

“If I were to list them all down, I won’t be done with the speech until night time. But there is aid available to all levels of society.”

Under the BKM, single people earning below RM2,500 will be given a one-off RM350 cash aid. 

In tabling the budget yesterday, Tengku Zafrul said the allocation for BKM is RM8.2 billion and it will benefit 9.6 million recipients. 

Low-income families earning less than RM2,500 with three or more children are entitled to RM2,000 in cash aid. An additional RM500 will also be given to single parents with dependents.

Tengku Zafrul said an additional assistance of RM300 is allocated for senior citizens’ households. 

The eligibility for those who qualify for the programme will now be based on the 2019 food poverty line, which stands at RM1,169.

This, he said, is to ensure there is wider social welfare coverage to communities that really need help. – October 30, 2021.