The problem with 10 sen

Today the Malaysian government reduced the price of petrol and diesel at the pump by a further 10 sen a liter. The latest cut will save the average Joe another 3-4 bucks every time he refules his car. This is in addition to the RM 4.5-6 that he saved after the 15 sen cut just under a month ago.

Is Joe happy? No.

News of the price drop broke just hours ago and many Joe's are complaining about how "little" the price slash has been. I need to remind Joe that this isn't the Malaysia on Sale carnival. I'm not complaining as though I like paying high prices for a comodity available in my backyard. Far from it.

What irks me is how we are drawn to the idea of cheap. We're so smitten by getting more for less that we've forgotten about everything else in between. In the case of fuel price, we've become engrossed in pump price that we've completely ignored the need for better fuel subsidy management.

When the price of fuel took that major upshot, many were busy suggesting new ways in which to delivery the subsidy to the people. Fuel cards, quota, rebates and the likes were the talk of the town. The idea was to deliver the rebates to the people who need it the most and to reduce the amount of subsidy given to higher income groups and the bloke who drive the new S-Class.

Better resource management.

Today we're still throwing subsidy into the S-Class' 90L fuel tank. For each full tank the S-Class takes on, about RM 27 worth of subsidy goes with it. On the other hand, for every Kancil's brim fill, it's RM 8. That's a 238% premium. We're losing the plot. We're still spending excessive amounts of public funds to subsidise wasteful spending.

Now I am not suggesting that the higher income group get nothing from the tax buckaroolas that they (are supposed to) pay. They're entitled to their fair share of subsidy too. But let's be realistic, the S-Class is going to guzzle more fuel than the little animal.

I'm sure most will remember who empty KL roads were after the the big hike. 45 minute journeys became 15 minute journeys for one reason and one reason only - people cut wasting. But today everyone's more comfortable to waste again. We've gotten used to the idea of the current price and these price drops further encourage our wasteful habits.

I can't change how the government chooses to spends my money overnight. In the meantime, I'm going to continue to do my part by reducing the amount of travel I do. If I must travel, I'll plan my journey or better yet I'll car pool.

To those who are still complaining about 10 sen, I suggest you do the same.