KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 10.215 million recipients of the Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN) have received the government's assistance involving a total amount of RM10.90 billion as at June 26.
In its 11th Laksana report today, Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said this represented a 97.32 per cent implementation rate.
Another RM20 million had been disbursed to 25,000 BPN recipients through BSN branches nationwide between June 19 and 26 June.
Tengku Zafrul said payments for successful appellants had also been made from June 24 to June 29, amounting to RM139 million.
On Bantuan Sara Hidup (BSH), he said payments for Phase 3 would be made by end-July to 5.0 million recipients, comprising 3.8 million households and 1.2 million individuals.
Zafrul said the government had allocated RM3 billion for Phase 3 for recipients in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak (non-rural areas).
The BSH is based on income levels for households with income less than RM2,000, RM2,000 to RM3,000 and RM3,000 to RM4,000, as well as single individuals (40 years old and above) with income less than 2,000.
Tengku Zafrul said recipients for the household category would also receive an additional assistance of RM120 per child (under 18 years old) for up to four children.
For example, households earning less than RM2,000 with four children will receive RM1,080.
The BPN cash payments for second and third phases of BSH 2020 (rural areas of Sabah and Sarawak) without bank accounts, will commence from July 1 to July 31.
"This will be facilitated by the Sabah Treasury (PMSabah) and the Sarawak Treasury (PMSarawak). The initiative will benefit 53,325 recipients with a total financial payout of RM28.7 million.
"PMSabah and PMSarawak will visit designated locations in the rural areas of Sabah and Sarawak to facilitate the delivery of this aid recipients," he said, adding that the breakdown of recipients in Sarawak and Sabah accounted for 41,995 and 11,330 respectively.
On the Emlpoyees Provident Fund's i-Lestari programme, Zafrul said 4.34 million applications had been approved with a value of RM2.17 billion a month as of June 26.
He said the rakyat's social security would not be taken lightly, citing that the Prihatin and Penjana measures were meant to help the rakyat in the short term.
"The government will closely monitor the current situation and formulate more sustainable solutions for the medium and longer term," he said.
The government has also disbursed a total of RM1.63 billion for the Prihatin Special Grant (GKP), benefitting 544,500 micro small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as at June 26.
For micro SMEs who were approved upon further review and found to be eligible, payments had been made from June 29.
Meanwhile, disbursements for 21,983 micro SMEs that had successfully appealed for the GKP will involve an allocation of RM65.95 million and will be made on July 2.
For micro SMEs who provided inaccurate bank account details or had not provided a bank account number, they are required to update their bank account details at https://gkp.hasil.gov.my.
On the wage subsidy programme, Tengku Zafrul said a total of RM7.07 billion had been approved for 307,518 employers benefiting more than 2.46 million employees as of June 26.
For the EPF's Covid-19 Assistance Programme (e-CAP) for employers, 36,107 applications had been received and 9,542 applications were approved, amounting to RM63.9 million in terms of employers' contribution as of June 26.
"The government would like to stress that the EPF will be closely monitoring this to ensure that restructured contributions will be paid in the future.
"Legal action can be taken against employers who do not fulfill their obligations by honouring their (statutory) contributions towards their employees' retirement fund," he said.
As at June 26, the SME Soft Loan Funds administered by Bank Negara Malaysia received a total financing of RM8.4 billion.
It had been approved by local banks and accepted by 19,539 SMEs.
This amount included funds from the Special Relief Facility, Automation & Digitalisation Facility, All- Economic Sector Facility and Agrofood facility.
As at June 26, under the BSN micro credit scheme, 7,577 applications were approved, valued at RM260.6 million, while 25,071 applications were approved for the TEKUN programme, amounted to RM191.50 million.
On the moratorium on loan repayment by financial institutions, which took effect on April 1, the estimated value of the moratorium stood at about RM47.5 billion as at June 26.
Out of this figure, a total of RM16.6 billion was utilised by the business sector while RM30.9 billion was utilised by the rakyat via financing facilities that qualified for the moratorium.
"Borrowers are reminded that the moratorium period will end on September 30. For borrowers who may need to restructure and reschedule their facilities beyond September 30, they are advised to consult their respective financial institutions as soon as possible," he said.
Tengku Zafrul said the government encouraged the public to plan and take control of their finances, and consult with licensed professionals for insights on actions that can be taken to improve one's cash flow and resolve financial constraints arising from the effects of Covid-19.
"The rakyat should also exercise caution and vigilant against scams disguised as economic stimulus patches and relief measures under the name Prihatin and Penjana," he said.