THE Finance Ministry (MOF) will work with the Communications and Digital Ministry to tackle eBeliaRahmah credit-to-cash scams.

Deputy Finance Minister Ahmad Maslan said the two ministries will meet tomorrow to discuss the matter.

“Discussions will be held to ensure this matter (scams) can be publicised on platforms such as the ministry’s social media pages, television and radio.

“We do not want some two million youth recipients of the initiative to be cheated by scammers in their attempt to exchange the credit for RM200 in cash,” he told a media conference after a visit to the Johor Valuation and Property Service Department in Johor Baru today.

He said recipients of the aid, which is aimed at full-time university students aged 18 to 20, cannot convert the RM200 e-wallet credit to cash.

This is because the aid, provided via Boost, Setel and Touch ‘n Go eWallet, is part of the government’s efforts to encourage cashless spending among youth, Ahmad said.

“The government hopes youth can fully spend the credit, especially on micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), which will be able to support the local MSME economy,” he said.

Bernama had reported there were many advertisements on social media offering services to convert eBeliaRahmah credit into cash after the aid was disbursed on June 26.

Ahmad said Teachers’ Education Institute (IPG) students are excluded from eBeliaRahmah because they are already receiving RM450 in monthly allowance.

“I hope politicians who are raising this issue check these facts first,” he said.

Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman recently took to TikTok to question why IPG students were not included in eBeliaRahmah. – Bernama, July 2, 2023.