Sin Chew Daily

Public wrath over unreasonable spikes in electricity bills has been ignited of late.

We all know that many business sectors have been badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic, affecting the livelihoods of many. Pressure is building up and the sudden increase in utility bills will only add to the burden already unbearably high on the shoulders of the people.

Some have started an online petition demanding 50% discount for electricity bills, and the response received has been overwhelming, putting substantial pressure on TNB and the government.

The government has later responded with an encouraging news that 7.66 million households in Peninsular Malaysia will be exempted from paying electricity bills for the months of April through June, or enjoy monthly discounts up to RM77 a month.

The news has somewhat put out the fires of public fury but this whole thing should not draw to a close just that. The authorities must seriously look into this matter to make sure similar incidents will not happen again in future to exacerbate the burden of the rakyat.

Malaysians are experiencing increasingly heavy economic pressure during the MCO and by right the government should feel the people's pain and offer a hand to help those in need.

Although the electricity bill issue has been resolved for now, public wrath has been ignited. It is hoped that after this incident, the authorities will think well ahead for the well-being of the people instead of waiting for the fire to spread beyond control before taking any action.

In addition to lessening the people's burden, the government must also think far and wide in promoting a healthy development for the electricity supply sector so as to provide more effective and affordable energy supply to the people.

Former prime minister Najib Razak and former energy minister Yeo Bee Yin have clashed over the issue of funding the bill discounts and why electricity tariff has remained high. These issues should not be just heated topics of politicians' war of words but must be addressed with substantial policies derived from rational discussions and debates in a bid to safeguard public well-being.

We have to stress that the electricity tariff issue entail not just microscopic operations such as bill calculation but also the entire sector's structure, such as market monopoly.

Under the concept of market economy, while users are duty-bound to bear the cost of electricity used, bill computation and fee structure have to be reasonable, too.

Fomca chief operating officer Saravanan Thambirajah has urged the government to review the tariff block structure which is now outdated. Where this is concerned, the government needs to engage in meaningful dialogues with interested parties.

Meanwhile, owing to monopoly in the supply market in the absence of any competition, Malaysians have been denied more reasonably priced electricity. If the sector is liberalized, consumers can look forward to much more affordable electricity while the industry can have a healthier development.