KUALA LUMPUR (June 5): The government has introduced numerous measures to benefit individuals as part of the RM35 billion Economic Recovery Plan named PENJANA in short, that was announced by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today.

There is the introduction of a tax exemption of up to RM3,000 for fees paid by parents to nurseries for child care — up from RM2,000 previously — and RM800 eVouchers for the use of childcare services that are booked online, to be used from now till end-August.

These initiatives will be facilitated by the Ministry of Community and Women Development, together with the Inland Revenue Board.

To enable remote working and education under the new norm, Muhyiddin also announced 1GB of free internet for all users from 8am to 6pm every day, to surf educational web pages and to use video conferences applications, up until Dec 31, 2020.

"Besides that, all users will be able to access for free, without limit, government web pages and the government's Covid-19 application, in particular mySejahtera," Muhyiddin said when delivering his speech on PENJANA.

For e-wallet users

The government is also crediting RM50 into each e-wallet, matched by RM50 cash-back or discounts by e-wallet operators, to benefit 15 million Malaysians aged above 18, with annual income below RM100,000.

For single moms and the disabled

Meanwhile, the government is planning a one-off payment of RM300 to be given to 300,000 single moms and disabled listed under the Department of Social Welfare before Hari Raya Aidiladha.

For gig-economy workers

The government, which is in the midst of crafting a policy to support the growth of the gig economy and the welfare of those in this sector, is also allocating RM50 million in the form of matching grant for gig economy platforms to allocate social security contribution of up to RM162, and Employee Providend Fund contribution of up to RM250 per employee, per year.

Limitless public transport rides on RM30 per month

Separately, it will introduce a RM30 monthly public transport pass (Programme MY30) to be used for limitless rides on all public transportation under the purview of Prasarana in the Klang Valley.

The programme is open to all Malaysians and will take effect from June 15 until end-2020.

Additional allocation for B40 PEKA

On the healthcare front, the government plans to allocate an additional RM50 million for the B40 PEKA Scheme, to fund screening tests and medical equipment.

The B40 PEKA Scheme is the Skim Peduli Kesihatan for the B40 group, a government initiative under the Ministry of Health that aims to sustain the healthcare needs of low the country's income groups by focusing on non-communicable diseases.

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