UMNO Leaders Claimed BPN Application is too Bureaucratic

The Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN) was seen to be on a declining trend since the second week of April 2020.

Media exposure on the issue has been low despite its second phase pay out was initiated on May 4.

Then, on May 9, the topic of BPN experienced a spike in media exposure, constantly having high media presence for the next three days.

The surge in media exposure was due to the announcement by Finance Minister, Tengku Zafrul Aziz, who revealed that the treasury department had approved an additional 2.3 million BPN applicants with a total worth of RM1.7 billion.

In addition, the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) had also extended the deadline for BPN appeal to May 31.

At the same time, several UMNO leaders came forth and urged the government to hasten the process of BPN handout to those who were left out during the initial pay out period.

UMNO veteran and Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said that the application for BPN has been too bureaucratic which has been troublesome for the applicants, particularly the Orang Asli community who live in hard-to-reach areas.

On the other hand, UMNO president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi also voiced the same opinion on the issue, urged the government to stop being too bureaucratic and fasten the pay out process.

Overall, the delay in BPN handout was seen to be addressed by leaders in the government rather than the opposition.

BPN pay out to the newly approved applicants will be initiated on May 15, hence the next batch of handout would be expected to begin on June 15.