Fake posters on government aid being spread - Fahmi

SHAH ALAM - Pakatan Harapan (PH) communications director Fahmi Fadzil today called out a campaign spreading fake news on social media about the government announcing aid packages to the people.

On his Twitter account today, the Lembah Pantai member of parliament revealed posters apparently stating that grants of Bantuan Sara Hidup (BSH) special assistance of RM700 credited before the end of the year, the MyKasih food assistance program of RM100 for three months and the approval of a special targeted release of the Employee Provident Fund (EPF) withdrawals, which were all fake.

"A lot of fake news is being spread on WhatsApp," said Fahmi.

"The Prime Minister has just chaired the first meeting of the The National Action Council on cost of living (NACCOL) today. There was no such announcement. Please be aware," he posted on Twitter.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday gave a period of two weeks to a special committee that was established to study the implications if targeted subsidies are implemented involving some of the main needs of the people, particularly the poor.

He also said, for the time being, some of the subsidies implemented such as oil and electricity tariffs benefit all citizens including the wealthy and large industries, while his immediate target in addressing the high cost of living is the poor, who are more significantly affected by it.