KUALA LUMPUR, April 1 — Defence Minister Mohamad Sabu announced today a RM500 one-off Raya incentive for Armed Forces veterans, totalling RM79.68 million in total.
Mohamad, also known as Mat Sabu, said the incentive is part of Putrajaya’s effort to recognise veterans’ welfare and appreciate their sacrifice and loyalty to the country.
“Even though we are tight on our finance, we still find a way to look after the welfare of our veterans and I myself have visited the Finance Ministry on multiple occasions to ask for a little allocation.
“After much manoeuvring, we are now able to allocate the incentives in conjunction with the Raya celebrations,” he said during the winding-up of his ministerial speech at Dewan Rakyat here.
Mohamad also pointed out that pensioners and non-pensioners will be eligible for the one-off payment.
He said the Department of Veterans Affairs has been tasked with distributing the incentive, with applications to officially begin on April 14.
“Payment will be made on May 27 and hopefully this small gesture will be able to lighten their burden during the Ramadan and Aidilfitri celebrations,” he said.
Muslims in Malaysia will celebrate Aidilfitri in June.
