Only two fined for GST profiteering so far, ministry says

PUTRAJAYA, April 27 — The Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry said today that it has identified only two companies so far to be compounded for profiteering since the Goods and Services Tax (GST) was rolled out on April 1.

Despite that, it said that there are five more cases under the Price Control and Anti-Profiteering Act 2011 that still need to be fine-tuned with the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC), out of the 467 investigations that have been initiated.

“Up until today, 30 investigation papers are now in the final stages to be submitted to the AGC. From the 30, seven has been finished at the officer level,” the ministry’s secretary-general Datuk Seri Alias Ahmad told reporters.

“Two of them will receive compounds, while the other five cases need to be corrected first,” he added, admitting that the fine has yet to be decided but will not exceed RM50,000 each.

The two companies include a trader in Penang and a wholesaler in Selangor, Alias said, but he declined to elaborate on the case.

Alias said the ministry’s officers have conducted 169,440 checks between April 1 and 26, averaging at 6,500 checks per day with its some 2,000 staff.

Meanwhile, Customs GST director Datuk Subromaniam Tholasy said that as of yesterday, it has received a total of 4,557 complaints on the implementation of the consumption tax.

Malaysia started charging a GST of 6 per cent from April 1, to a mixed response from the public.