PETALING JAYA: While some eMadani claimants found it a breeze to claim their RM100, others complained that their applications were rejected despite having an annual income of below the RM100,000 threshold.
“I appreciate that there are some teething issues but on the other hand, more than 10 million applicants have already applied online,” said Treasury secretary-general Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican said in response to feedback gathered by The Star.
“As of Tuesday, in less than two days, about four million people have already had their applications approved with money deposited into their ewallets,” said Johan.
Finance executive Wei Min Jue received the RM100 after answering a few questions.
“I claimed mine through the Touch n Go app. I think this does activate the digital economy,” said the 29 year-old.
“The rollout and the wide participation by merchants encourages the beneficiaries to claim, or there would have been nowhere to spend it,” said Wei, one of the four million applicants who received the ewallet credit as of yesterday.
Another applicant, Parameswari Muniandy, claimed the RM100 easily.
“Yes, they do ask this and that but overall, there was no problem,” said the 32-year-old who works at a publishing company in Sentul.
Khairul Anuwar Yusoff, of Taman Intan Baiduri in Kepong, said the problems could be due to the fact that the applicants must also use their phone’s camera.
“We need to scan our faces for verification. I got mine done anyway,” said the 59 year-old who works for an NGO.
Eligible Malaysians aged above 21 can apply for the RM100 eMadani credit starting from Dec 4. They must have received the Rahmah Cash Aid (STR) as of Nov 7, or earn an annual income below RM100,000 as of July 15.
The public can check their eligibility at manfaat.mof.gov.my/individu/eMadani
The RM100 will be deposited into their chosen ewallet or the DuitNow QR code via MAE, Setel, ShopeePay and Touch ‘n Go eWallet.
Meanwhile, on social media, some claimants either complained about not receiving the credit or not being able to spend it.
“I could not claim eMadani because I had not declared my 2022 income taxes.
“How could I declare my 2022 income taxes when I only started my first job in 2023?” said a user named hejynhjtj@thelove_rjshjjv on X.
Another X user, Emrean Sekhon, lamented that he could not spend his RM100.
“Did anyone get their eMadani on MAE? Have you guys tried using it? I have tried two retails, but it did not go through,” Emrean wrote.
Maybank, which owns MAE, responded to Emrean and asked for his details.
Another claimant @dalinwhu on X said that to use the RM100 on MAE, one must first have a balance of RM100 in their account.
“You must have the balance in the MAE account. Then only can you use eMadani.
“Otherwise, it will be deducted from your bank account,” said @dalinwhu.
According to the MAE website, “After making a payment, the eMadani funds will be credited to your MAE ewallet as cashback”.
Responding to these complaints, Johan said these problems may be due to the fact that the eMadani target group has fewer digital natives and that certain conditions have to be fulfilled for verification purposes.
“Every programme by the government has a cut-off date. The 2022 Internal Revenue Board (LHDN) income tax filing is the latest that we have.
“Any complaints can be channeled to str@treasury.gov.my or the hotline at 03-88824565/ 03-88824566,” said Johan.
