SEREMBAN, April 18 — The Negri Sembilan Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry (KPDNHEP) has identified the chicken suppliers and traders who raise the prices for chicken which affected consumers.
Subsequently, two notices were issued by the state’s KPDNHEP to the raw chicken suppliers on April 15 and 16.
Its director, Ain Arjuna Aziz Zaman said the notices were aimed at going to the root of the current hike problem before action was taken against them if the increase was arbitrary and unreasonable.
“We will supervise based on the power given to the ministry in accordance to the situation and market as is usually done, namely, through the Festive Season Maximum Price Control Scheme (SHMMP) to ensure the majority of the people can enjoy the best prices.
“Normally, chicken is among the items which are always included in the list of goods in SHMMP,” she told Bernama.
Earlier, the media reported the price of processed chicken went up to RM10 a kilogramme since early Ramadan after suppliers and chicken farm owners raised their prices.
In the meantime, she suggested that consumers make full use of the ‘price catcher’ application to check the prices of goods including outlets offering the best price alternatives.
She said the application could save time and cost and consumers could make comparisons among different premises as it highlighted the prices of goods on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.
Meanwhile, Negri Sembilan Consumer Association chairman Khairuldin Yunus said the relevant authorities should announce a price control scheme soon to prevent certain quarters from taking advantage of the situation.
He also said the price control should not be limited to only the festive season.
“To date, we still have not received any complaint on chicken price hike from the public. Maybe, they are reluctant to do so. Nevertheless, the government must monitor the increase to avoid burdening consumers in this challenging time,” he added. — Bernama
