THE prices of some food items are cheaper this Hari Raya by 30% to 50% compared to the festive season last year, said Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Minister Salahuddin Ayub.

He said this was proof the Pakatan Harapan government, which scrapped the goods and services tax (GST) on June 1 after winning the recent elections, had eased the people’s cost of living.

“The price difference may not be big but the price of chicken per kg last year was around RM7 or more and now you can buy a kg for around RM5 or RM6.

“The price of vegetables have also fallen while beef can be bought for around RM30 per kg. Overall prices are cheaper by between 30 % to 50%,” Salahuddin said when met at the prime minister’s Hari Raya open house in Putrajaya today.

Upon being made minister, Salahuddin had promised to ensure lower and more stable food prices. He has also pledged to end food import and distribution monopolies.

“The ministry is developing mechanisms to ensure an environment where food prices are lower and demand and supply are well-managed.

“Prices may later depend on implementation of the sales and services tax (SST) but we will control supply and demand and ensure that there is competitiveness,” he said.

The new government has scrapped GST, a multi-stage consumption tax, and is set to replace it with the SST, which will largely be imposed on certain goods at the manufacturing stage. – June 15, 2018.