KUALA LUMPUR, March 8 — Perbadanan Perwira Niaga Malaysia or Pernama is to open five more retail outlets, raising to 87 the number of these shops in the country, mainly in the Armed Forces camps, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said these outlets, which sold products cheaper by 35 to 45 per cent, received encouraging response and there were requests for them to continue operating.

Replying to a supplementary question from Datuk Raime Unggi (BN-Tenom), he said records showed that in December 2017, Pernama clinched retail sales valued at RM3 million and this increased to RM3.1 million in January this year.

"In comparison, the sales in October and November last year were only RM1.9 million per month,” he said, adding that there was a 37.7 per cent rise in sales.

Raime had wanted to know the outcome of the transformation of Pernama to help address the rising cost of living faced by Armed Forces personnel and veterans.

On the transformation of Pernama, Hishammuddin said the outlets sold 513 types of products at lower-than-market prices, including essential goods such as sugar, rice and cooking oil.

Pernama also sold school uniforms up to 45 per cent below market price, usually on the concept of "buy one pair, free one pair”, he said.

Hishammuddin said Pernama had also introduced a multi-purpose card known as Capasa (Care for Partner Satisfaction) as an identification for all members for the purchase of products at the outlets.

"Members can accumulate rewards points with the exclusive card and redeem the gifts from time to time,” he said.

He said Pernama, which was established in 1983, provided benefits to more than 300,000 Armed Forces personnel, veterans and their families.

When replying to a supplementary question, from Datuk Noraini Ahmad (BN-Parit Sulong), on government measures to face the digital economy and entrepreneurship, he said 1,645 Armed Forces veterans had been trained by Pernama at the Pernama Retail Academy to venture into entrepreneurship and business. — Bernama