.JPG "Datuk Wan Junaidi speaks to the press at the Parliament on March 22, 2018. u00e2u20acu2022 Picture by Miera Zulyana")
KUCHING, Sept 2 — The federal government should not only look at the minimum monthly cost of living allowance (COLA) but also other issues related to workers and the self-employed, Santubong MP Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar suggested today.
He said other issues include the minimum wage system and pension for low-income groups such as clerical staff, drivers and office boys.
“The federal government should look into cases involving the police and army personnel who retired in 1950s through to 1990s, the B40 in the rural areas and the urban poor, the self-employed and the unemployed PTPTN borrowers,” he said, pointing out that these were people badly affected by the high cost of living.
Wan Junaidi, who is a former federal minister, was responding to the Malaysian Trades Union Congress’ (MTUC) proposal for the federal government to introduce COLA and increase the mandatory retirement age to 65 in Budget 2020.
Yesterday, MTUC secretary-general J. Solomon had said it was the federal government’s key responsibility to lower the cost of living and must accept that Malaysians in the middle and lower-income levels were unable to make ends meet, while those with families were struggling.
He had also said there was an immediate need to grant all workers of B40 and M40 a monthly COLA of RM500.
While Wan Junaidi said he does not object to MTUC’s proposal, he said the federal government should adopt a holistic approach to the issue.
He suggested that the threshold for poverty ought to be adjusted as the present one is no longer relevant since it was fixed a couple of years back.
“The minimum wage must be reasonably increased. It must be based on reality. How does a wage earner survive with RM1,050 in Kuala Lumpur, Johor Baru or George Town even in Kuching or Kota Kinabalu?” he asked.
He said “social safety nets” such as Bantuan Sara Hidup and allowances for student, fishermen, rubber tappers and small-holders must be in place to ensure that these groups could put food on the table.
