LETTER | We Malays have a word that I feel has no English equivalent. It's melenting. The closest translation I can think of perhaps is probably "aroused to anger", but that doesn't quite capture the spirit and nuances associated with the word.

While this is a Malay word, this trait is not confined to the community. I dare venture that of late, Malaysians as a whole, are quick to get worked up over baseless and senseless issues.

Take the recent announcement about the removal of subsidies for chicken, chicken eggs and bottled cooking oil. Acting on impulse, the Malays, Chinese, Indians and other communities were quick to meroyan (whining, or kicking up a fuss) especially on their social media based on half-truths, if not total lies.

Let's examine the issue. Earlier this week, the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry announced the removal of subsidies for bottled cooking oil, chicken and chicken eggs starting July 1.

But Malaysians, when they see the words "subsidy removal" especially at a time when the economy is still chugging along, it will trigger their melenting mechanism. No thanks to agent provocateurs taking advantage of the situations, Malaysians quickly accuse the government of being insensitive and detached from reality.

Cruel govt?

Now here's the reality: The government has allocated an RM4 billion subsidy for cooking oil for this year, more than the RM2.2 billion for last year and RM500 million for 2020. So, which part of the government is insensitive, especially to the poor?

The government only removed subsidies for cooking oil in bottles of 2kg, 3kg and 5kg only. The subsidy for cooking oil in 1kg polybag packages remains. The subsidy for bottled cooking oil was only introduced in August 2021 and meant to last for three months only but it has been dragged to 10 months now! Does that sound like a cruel government to you?

As for the removal of subsidies for chicken and chicken eggs, the government said that this is to ensure adequate food supply in the market and stabilise prices in the long run.

Any economist can tell you that prolonged and massive subsidies are inefficient. It does not make sense for the T20 to enjoy equal if not more subsidies than the B40 group.

This is why the government has decided to increase the Bantuan Keluarga Malaysia (BKM) cash handout to the B40 groups. Households under the category will be given an additional RM100 while unmarried youth stand to pocket an extra RM500. This brings the total BKM payout households can get this year to be as high as RM2,500. Pray tell, how is it that the government can be accused of not helping the poor?

To me, the problem boils down to our propensity to let our own biases cloud our judgements. How many of us actually read beyond the "Cooking oil subsidies removed" headlines? We get a kick from complaining about a worldview that fits our biases and prejudices, even if they were distorted versions of reality.

We love to melenting and meroyan. And that is doing the country a huge disservice!

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.