Fuziah said her ministry has stepped up enforcement under Op Tiris, which has been expanded to cover RON95 petrol, liquefied petroleum gas, cooking oil, sugar and wheat flour.
She said officers have also been posted to eight immigration, customs, quarantine and security complexes in border states such as Kelantan, Perlis, Kedah and Perak to curb smuggling.
“We are monitoring and tightening enforcement in (these) border states to curb the misappropriation and smuggling of controlled subsidised goods,” she told FMT.
She said authorities nationwide recorded 1,646 RON95-related cases with seizures worth more than RM1.5 million, and 829 cases involving cooking oil with seizures of more than RM3.6 million, from Jan 1, 2024 to Oct 3 this year.
In the same period, 25,457 inspections were carried out in the four border states, leading to 2,210 cases with total seizures worth RM3.56 million.
Kelantan recorded the most number of checks at 12,775, with seizures worth RM1.21 million, including 140 cooking oil cases (RM353,194.40) and 1,144 RON95 cases (RM403,354.23).
It was previously reported that subsidised packet cooking oil and RON95 remain widely available in southern Thailand, including Sungai Golok, and can be bought in large quantities without restriction.
The oil is reportedly sold at RM5.30 to RM6.60 per kg compared with RM2.50 in Malaysia, while RON95 is priced at RM3.30 to RM3.60 per litre compared with RM1.99 under the Budi Madani initiative.
Fuziah said her ministry is working closely with the police, the Malaysian Border Control and Protection Agency, the customs department and the armed forces to stem the smuggling of such goods.
She warned that anyone found guilty under the Control of Supplies Act 1961 could face stiff punishment.
They may be fined up to RM1 million or jailed for up to three years for the first offence, and up to RM3 million for repeat offences. Companies may be fined up to RM2 million and RM5 million, respectively.
She also urged the public to report any misuse or smuggling of subsidised goods to her ministry.