PADU to be launched on January 2nd - first step in targeted RON95, diesel subsidies

On January 2nd, following the New Years Day public holiday, 2024 will kick off with the launch of the much discussed Pangkalan Data Utama (PADU), a government database that will keep track of the socio-economic status of Malaysian citizens, at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC).

Importantly, it marks the first real step on the government’s ladder to do away with the current RON95 and diesel fuel subsidy system to one targeted based on household disposable income and other similar factors.

That said, actual the mechanisms of its implementation remain vague. While the use of subsidy cards have been mentioned, their distribution and usage procedures are not yet detailed.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will be officiating the launch of PADU and, as confirmed by economy minister Rafizi Ramli via a posting on X (Twitter, ex-Twitter), the public is invited to attend the event physically (by registering here) or remotely via livestream.

According to Economy Ministry’s website, PADU aims to become the basis for a more holistic policy and initiative formulating process to develop the country. Companies and entrepreneurs will also apparently be encouraged to leverage it to conduct analysis and the like.

Other questions surrounding the security measures being put in place to protect the sensitive data of millions of Malaysians are likely to be addressed during the launch, which begins at 9.30am on January 2nd.

Strong defences are certainly a necessary and paramount concern here as such a centralised database will no doubt be the target of cyber criminals, especially as its contents includes potentially crippling personal and financial data if obtained by unscrupulous parties.