ALOR SETAR, May 30 — The Kedah Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living (KPDN) is investigating three cases of fleet card misuse and reviewing companies granted the facility to prevent abuse of subsidised fuel.

Kedah KPDN chief enforcement officer Zalina Aziz said the ministry is also reassessing companies provided with fleet card facilities to ensure they are not misused or in breach of stipulated conditions. 

“If any breach of conditions or misuse is detected, we will recommend the cancellation of the fleet card to headquarters,” she told Bernama.

On the implementation of Op Tiris Bersepadu 4.0 carried out in collaboration with Royal Malaysia Police and several other agencies, she said KPDN recorded 30 cases in the state, comprising 16 involving diesel seizures and 14 involving petrol. 

“Op Tiris, which has been conducted since March 16, has recorded total seizures valued at RM1.4 million, with 26 vehicles also confiscated,” she said.

Zalina said Kedah KPDN currently has about 190 enforcement personnel across five branches statewide, but continued to face constraints in monitoring all 362 petrol stations in the state.

She said 30 petrol stations are under special monitoring, including 18 located in border areas such as Bukit Kayu Hitam, Durian Burung and Baling.

“In industrial areas such as Sungai Petani and Kulim, the challenge is greater due to the numerous entry and exit routes and vast factory areas, making fuel smuggling activities difficult to predict,” she said. 

In addition, she said a number of them were found to have frequently changed vehicles and registration numbers to avoid detection by authorities, and carrying out their operations in the early hours of the morning when fewer workers are present at fuel stations.

“However, close cooperation with the PDRM has helped in terms of intelligence gathering and field operations, while also enhancing the safety of enforcement personnel during operations,” she added. — Bernama