Malaysia PM announces cash aid, fuel price cut to address rising living costs

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced new measures on Wednesday to address growing public disquiet about the rising cost of living, including a cash handout for all adult citizens and a promise to lower fuel prices.
His statement in a televised broadcast came ahead of a planned protest to be held in Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur on Saturday, aimed at forcing Anwar to step down over escalating prices and a failure to deliver on promised reforms.
Anwar’s administration has carried out a number of measures to boost revenue and productivity this year, including a minimum wage hike, increased electricity tariffs on heavy power users and an expanded sales and services tax.
Anwar has said the moves were mainly targeted at large businesses and the wealthy, but critics have voiced fears that higher costs would eventually be passed down to consumers, including lower and middle-income earners.