GEORGE TOWN: The usage of the 2.5L Toyota Vellfire as an official vehicle for Federal Government ministers has caused controversy.

       "The ministers received the official car on April this year, and this happened while people were losing their jobs, businesses went bankrupt and suicide cases were on the rise in 2021, said Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin.

       "For example, young people received a one-off RM150 and civil servants received RM700 special incentive as announced in the budget. The people were surely happy with this assistance.

       "However, behind all of this, these ministers from the Federal Government coalition received a "Vellfire assistance" of RM5,795.35 per month. Congratulations," he said in his Facebook post on Wednesday (Nov 3).

       Sim said the country's debts has reached RM1.3 trillion and has reached 65% of the country's gross domestic product.

       He was commenting on his oral questions at Dewan Rakyat, asking Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz about the cost of providing the Vellfire as the official car for the ministers since March 2020, and the monthly cost of the leasing of the luxury vehicles from concession company, Spanco.

       Through the provided answer, Tengku Zafrul said the government has started the replacement process from the 2.4L Proton Perdana to 2.5L Toyota Vellfire since April this year.

       "The total monthly lease for each unit is RM4851.61 to rent the car and RM908 for maintenance.

       "The government has also paid a lease cost of RM1.42mil to the concession company up until September," said Tengkul Zafrul in the written reply.

       Sim said most of the ministers who currently hold minister positions were those who loudly opposed the PH government for considering a proposal to change the official vehicle.

       "The most obvious one now is Najib, who was vocal against the PH government, but is now in deep silence.

       Meanwhile, in another Facebook post, former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the decision to change the official car has nothing to do with him.

       "Why is it Najib's fault? Those who proposed Vellfire for ministers was in January 2020, the government of the seventh Prime Minister.

       "The vehicles were replaced on April 2021, during the Emergency and no Parliament, under the government of the eighth Prime Minister," he said.