SERI KEMBANGAN, July 31 — Military veterans who do not qualify for pensions will get an annual stipend of RM1,200 on top off the 1Malaysia People’s Aid (BR1M), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced today.
The cash aid is among new benefits and schemes he announced for veterans, especially those without pensions and those with disabilities.
Dubbed Bantuan Bakti Negara (BBN), the fund will disburse the payment to any veteran who is listed in the BR1M database.
“This means they would receive the RM1,200 as an addition (to BR1M),” Najib said.
This scheme is meant to alleviate the financial burden of veterans in the Bottom 40th percentile of income earners.
Non-pensioners not eligible for the BR1M will also get RM600 annually upon reaching 60.
The BBN scheme will benefit over 76,000 army veterans, Najib said.
He also said that a veteran annuity scheme will be introduced to allow military officers who opt for early retirement to receive a fixed monthly payment from Putrajaya even if they do not serve long enough to qualify for pensions.
Military officers must serve 21 years to qualify for pension.
Veterans with disabilities from injuries sustain in the line of duty will also receive between 300 to 800 per cent increases to their pensions, depending on tenure and seriousness of injury.
“Some of them have been getting as little as RM65 a month. With this, the minimum payment would be RM500 a month up to RM2000 a month,” he said.
Veterans who suffer disabilities after retirement will have their annual payment from the military welfare fund, Tabung Pahlawan, doubled to RM1000 a year, Najib announced.
Putrajaya will also directly infuse RM5 million into the fund this year to ensure that this year’s total collection is the highest ever recorded. The fund collected RM 4.68 million last year.
Over 15,000 veterans attended the gathering today, which coincides with the Warriors’ Day celebration to commemorate all Malaysian soldiers slain in the line of duty.
