The UMNO-led BN government has caused postage rates to double ....from previous 30 cents to 60 - 70 cents. Hello, that is almost the cost of a teh tarek.
People are not happy....and PKR says.... "State PKR Youth secretary Syed Mikael Rizal Aidid said the increase in postage charges would burden the people." What really is the position of PKR....and the Pakatan Rakyat.
Government seem to be trying to shift blame to Pos Malaysia - a private company.
Remember, this increase will also affect the cost of subscribed periodicals, magazines, newspapers, etc... which will definitely go up. ALIRAN, Third World Network, Persatuan Pengguna, PAS - Harakah, etc..(the postal rates have doubled, i.e. from 25c to 50c.
The Pakatan Rakyat government-in-waiting should tell us all in Malaysia what they would do when they do come into power...
Maybe, nationalize Pos Malaysia - and reduce postage rates as it was (and if there is to be an increase - not more than 5-10 cents...- is that the Pakatan Rakyat position?
Or Pakatan Rakyat does not have a position....
It will really be good if Pakatan Rakyat would tell us how they would do things differently
See also earlier posts:-CEO, not a Minister that tells us that postage rates will double in July. Has the BN government lost control of postal services/rates?
KUALA LUMPUR: Snail-mailers may be becoming a rare breed in the cities but people who still use the post office were upset when they were asked to pay more for their postage.
For Nur Izza Othman, a 27-year-old administrative assistant, the extra cost for standard mail was “not acceptable.”
“Maybe, if the tariff is increased by stages, it is all right. But the sudden increase is drastic,” she said, reacting to the 100% increase in the new postal tariff for domestic mail, which took effect from Thursday.
“People in the rural areas will be hit by the new tariffs as they still rely on slow mail,” she said.
Pos Malaysia has come up with the new postal tariff, which has raised the standard mail of up to 20g to 60 sen (from 30 sen) while those up to 50g now costs 70 sen (up from 40 sen).Counting the cost: Clerk Punithaveni Pulinderan, 28, was unaware of the new postal tariff increase until Friday, when she made a trip to the Pos Malaysia headquarters to post a letter.
Sending of periodicals of up to 20g will now cost 50 sen instead of 25 sen.
The postal company expects its revenue to rise by 15% to 18% in each of two 12-month periods with the tariff hike.
This is the first time in 18 years that Pos Malaysia has revised the price of its domestic postage stamps.
Pos Malaysia said the increase was in line with the Government’s recent announcement to adjust the salary structure of postmen and counter clerks.
There was mixed reaction to the new postage costs when a team from The Star did a random check at the Pos Malaysia headquarters here yest erday.
“I think the price hike increase is necessary.
“We cannot call ourself a developed country if we continue to maintain third world prices,” said Patrick Samuel, 47, referring to the old 30 sen stamp rate.
“But I hope Pos Malaysia will provide quality services with the price increase,” the l ecturer added.
Mohd Izman, 26, echoed the sentiments.
“It is alright to raise prices as long as they (Pos Malaysia) use the higher revenue to improve customer service,” he said.
Foreign student Jeremy Gilbert, 20 who studies at the Nottingham University KL campus, felt that the 60 sen for standard domestic mails was still “very cheap”.
“The rate is still lower than anywhere else I have been, including Vietnam and La os,” said Gilbert, who was sending postcards to his family in England.
Pos Malaysia group head of corporate communications, Datuk Rohaiza Hashim said letters mailed on June 30 will not be penalised as they were mailed before the new tariff came into effect.
Despite the decline in mail volume, an across-the-board trend that is observed worldwide due to the digital age, Rohaiza also remained optimistic about sustaining Pos Malaysia’s revenue.
“We are continuously looking for ways to diversify our business and mail service will continue to be relevant, such as the use of parcel service in e-commerce,” she said, adding that 80% of Pos Malaysia’s customers were corporate bodies.
Rohaiza added that delivery to urban areas also far exceeded those in rural areas, with 85% of mail in urban areas.
Meanwhile, the Penang Pakatan Rakyat Youth secretariat held a demonstration in front of the former General Post Office at Lebuh Downing to object to the postage hike.
State PKR Youth secretary Syed Mikael Rizal Aidid said the increase in postage charges would burden the people.
About a dozen people staged the peaceful protest, displaying placards for 10 minutes outside the building, calling the public to protest against the hike by pasting the stamps upside down. - Star, 3/7/2010, Snail mailers upset at hike
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