KUALA LUMPUR: Various quarters have accused Bank Negara Malaysia and banks in the country of being "inhumane" and focusing more on profit than helping the rakyat during the trying times.
This followed Bank Negara's affirmation that interest of hire purchase (HP) loans and fixed rate Islamic financing accumulated under a six-month moratorium would still be charged to borrowers.
The central bank, meanwhile, expressed regrets over public "confusion" and "anxiety" following its announcement on changes to the moratorium on Thursday.
The Malaysian Trade Union Congress (MTUC) accused Bank Negara and the banks here of being inhumane.
MTUC said the move to charge borrowers with interests accumulated over the six-month period was equivalent to "daylight robbery" on borrowers whose finances were already stretched thin during the Covid-19 crisis.
"BNM and the banks add insult to injury by stating that borrowers would not pay any interest if the deferred loan payments are settled in October, at the end of the moratorium period," MTUC secretary-general J. Solomon said in a statement today.
"How many people in the present day would have the means to do so, given the economic fallout, job retrenchments along with pay cuts that are taking place across the country. This is an inhumane move by BNM and banks to further squeeze consumers in every way possible, without any regard for the welfare of the people," Solomon added.
MTUC urged Bank Negara to rescind the approval given to commercial banks to levy the interests on borrowers opting for the moratorium.
It said the government needed to seek an explanation from Bank Negara on its justification in giving such "inappropriate" approval to the banks.
Pakatan Harapan secretarial council called on the Finance Ministry to immediately ask Bank Negara and the Association of Banks Malaysia to reconsider imposing interest on the moratorium loans.
It also requested that banks not to impose any form of interest for as long as the moratorium was in effect, asking them to make sacrifices.
The council said the banking sector should be more considerate towards the people's welfare at a time when the local economy was severely affected by the Movement Control Order with reports of several hotels and companies going bankrupt and employees being forced to take a pay cut or getting retrenched.
Imposing interest under the moratorium had given the impression that the sector did not care about the rakyat's predicament, it added.
Bank Negara, in a frequently asked questions (FAQs) list today, denied that it had backpedalled on its initial announcement on March 25.
It stressed that the payment deferment was still automatic for HP and fixed rate Islamic financing.
It added that what was required now was an additional step to comply with procedural requirements under the Hire-Purchase Act 1967 and Shariah.
"This additional step is unavoidable, and is required to incorporate the changes to the payment schedule and/or amounts as a result of the six-month payment deferment in loan/financing agreements.
"We sincerely regret any confusion and anxiety that this announcement may have caused. The deferment of loan repayments is meant to ease cash flows for borrowers/customers affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
"This intent remains the same. The confusion arises because of the misperception that the repayment amounts for a HP loan cannot be changed," it said.
Bank Negara said the misperception arose due to an illustration provided in an initial version of the FAQs, "where certain assumptions and caveats were made."
It had later removed the example when banks provided their own illustrations.