Zahidi Zainul’s own Ministry denies plans to impose 20 sen eCommerce tax

Deputy Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Zahidi Zainul Abidin has recently shared that the Government plans to introduce a new eCommerce service tax to fund cyber security efforts. He said that the proposal is still in the planning phase by the ministry before it is presented.

Today, the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia has issued an official statement to deny the minister’s claims. According to the statement, there were no discussions to impose a service tax on users of eCommerce platforms which is said to be as much as 20 sen for purchases below RM1,000 and additional 20 sen for every subsequent RM1,000.

Zahidi told members of the press yesterday at a Merdeka @ Komuniti program in Kelantan that the service tax was necessary to improve communications security to prevent scams and cyber threats which are on the rise. He added that it is imperative that our country upgrades its cyber security capabilities and various parties must find ways to cover the cost.

The Deputy Minister has been receiving a lot of public backlash in the past week for making controversial statements. Last week, he called Veveonah a fraud when asked about the status of the NFCP projects in Sabah. The Minister’s claim that she wasn’t taking an online exam has been debunked by both Veveonah and her university.

[ SOURCE 2, IMAGE SOURCE ]

Related reading