If this sounded rather familiar, it is because a similar program has been announced in the previous tabling of the national budget last October. At that time, then-Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul also announced RM200 e-wallet credit for youth although the program was called ePemula. Last year’s ePemula announcement. [Image: RTM live feed]In fact, the “new” e-Tunai Belia Rahmah is being provided with a similar RM400 million budget – just like the original ePemula 2023 program. Interestingly, today’s announcement by the Prime Minister did not include students though unlike last year’s plan which also covers full-time students aged 21 years and above. Nevertheless, we reckoned that it is completely fair to feel that the e-Tunai Belia Rahmah is a rebranded program to go along with the other Payung Rahmah initiatives by the current government such as the affordable Menu Rahmah. That being said, Anwar did not reveal any other details regarding the rollout of the e-Tunai Belia Rahmah during the tabling of Belanjawan 2023. However, this is in line with previous annual budget announcements by the federal government which were usually light on details. Hence, we will likely see follow-up announcements in the coming months that will shed more light on the new e-Tunai Belia Rahmah program by the government. Aside from this youth-specific program, the Prime Minister has also announced the government’s plan to keep on offering the My50 unlimited travel pass for Rapid KL train and bus services as part of the RM388.1 billion allocation under the Belanjawan 2023.
