In yet another special address to Malaysians, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has announced another relief package in response to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic which has affected the country in all directions. Officially referred to as the Pakej Bantuan Perlindungan Ekonomi dan Rakyat Malaysia (PERMAI), the relief package which is said to carry 22 initiatives is valued at RM 15 billion.
Among the initiatives that PM Muhyiddin has listed in PERMAI is the extension of the free 1GB data which has been going on since June 2020 through Pelan Jana Semula Ekonomi Negara (PENJANA). Under PERMAI, consumers can continue to obtain free data until the end of April 2021.
While it might sound like a big deal, what is actually taking place here is an additional extension of just one month. This is because the free data offering was supposed to conclude by the end of March 2021 once the B40 telco credit which was announced during the tabling of Belanjawan 2021 is made available to the citizens.
It seems that the B40 telco credit could be considered as a separate aid outside of PERMAI since it was not mentioned by PM Muhyiddin during his address today. However, we have yet to hear any updates regarding the telco credit although it should be implemented within this quarter.
