GEORGE TOWN: The Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) today advised Hindus celebrating Deepavali to use the Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (SARA) Appreciation Aid to buy basic food items in conjunction with the festival on Oct 20.
CAP senior education officer N.V. Subbarow also advised them not to spend the money on unnecessary and unwanted items.
“CAP would like to thank the MADANI government for providing RM100 under the MyKasih scheme and we urge recipients to use it for their needs, especially to buy essential items for the Deepavali festival – it is a gift to Hindus who celebrate it.
“Some complain that it is only RM100, but in fact, if there are five people in a household aged 18 and above, the family will get RM500 – this will greatly reduce the burden on B40 families,“ he said in a statement today.
CAP also reminded consumers not to rush to use the aid because the deadline is Dec 31, and to use it wisely.
In conjunction with the National Day celebration, the government announced a one-time appreciation aid of RM100 to all adult Malaysians aged 18 and above under the SARA programme.
The initiative benefits 22 million people, involving an additional RM2 billion, bringing the total allocation for the Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR) and SARA programmes this year to RM15 billion – the highest in the history of the country’s cash aid programmes. – Bernama