Budget 2024: No driving test-fee initiative a boon for the disadvantaged

KUALA LUMPUR - The government’s initiative to continue paying for driving test fees of class B2 motorcycle licences, e-hailing and taxis for the underprivileged is seen to ease the burden of living expenses.

The wide measure announced in Budget 2024 is also seen to encourage the disadvantaged to generate income.

In Johor, factory worker Mohd Sallehuddin Safwan, 39, said people should seize the opportunity because having a licence means they can generate income through e-hailing services.

Part-time worker Nadia Ali, 38, said the initiative reflected the government’s concern for improving the people’s well-being, notably the B40 group.

"I really wanted to join the e-hailing service to increase my source of income before but was hindered because I needed to get a Public Service Vehicle (PSV) Licence... and now I hope the process of passing the test for a PSV licence will be simplified so that I can seize this (no test-fee) golden opportunity provided by the government,” she said.

Private worker Ahmad Ajmal Mohd Jamil, 48, said that the no test-fee initiative will encourage B40 youth to obtain a valid licence to ride motorcycles.

In Pahang, state Communications and Multimedia, Youth, Sports and Non-Government Committee chairman Fadzli Mohamad Kamal said the initiative coincided with the current situation to ease the burden of people faced with the rising cost of living.

An information technology assistant at a company, Akmal Daniel Mohd Badrul Hisham, 21, said the concession proved that the Unity Government led by the prime minister was aware of current needs.

"Most friends in the village still don’t have a licence due to financial reasons, so the government’s exemption is most helpful and I hope they don’t waste this opportunity," he said.

In Terengganu, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UiTM) Chendering student Muhammad Azran Imran, 19, said he actually intended to apply for assistance next year to facilitate his commuting from campus to his home in Kuala Nerus.

"I couldn’t afford to get a motorcycle licence yet because the money saved is still not enough. Therefore, when the government agreed to bear the driving test fee for the B2 class motorcycle licence recently, I felt relieved and will seize this opportunity,” he said.

For supermarket employee Rabiatul Adawiyah Zakaria, 26, the initiative provides an opportunity for those with no income or low wages to obtain a vehicle licence, thus facilitating them in their affairs.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, when tabling Budget 2024 on Oct 13, announced that the government agreed to continue to cover driving test fees for class B2 motorcycle licences, e-hailing and taxis for the benefit of more than 40,000 youth from underprivileged families. - BERNAMA