Give extra RM1,000 each to the needy in March, April instead of dipping into EPF savings, Pakatan tells Putrajaya

KUALA LUMPUR, March 23 — Pakatan Harapan (PH) has suggested for Putrajaya to instead disburse additional aid of RM1,000 twice in March and April to recipients of the Bantuan Sara Hidup (BSH) financial aid.

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, PH said such a move would cost Putrajaya RM8.2 billion, but would be the speediest approach to help those who are most affected by the movement control order (MCO) rather than withdrawing from the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF).

“Those who are allowed to withdraw their own EPF savings should be aware that this is not an aid but is taken from their own future savings,” the pact said in a statement.

Earlier, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced that Malaysians are now allowed to withdraw a maximum of RM500 monthly from their EPF savings to buy essential goods amid the worsening Covid-19 pandemic.

Muhyiddin said all Malaysians aged 55 and below are eligible to withdraw from their EPF Account Two for a period over 12 months.

The pact also said it welcomes the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government’s decision to disburse aid to state governments regardless of partisan lines.

It said the Selangor and Johor state governments have already allocated RM30,000 and RM20,000 respectively to their state assemblymen to mitigate the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We suggest for the federal government to allocate funds for Parliamentary seats regardless of parties so the people can benefit from the democratically-elected MPs,” it added.

The PN government has previously snubbed PH-led states during a meeting to discuss its response to Covid-19.

Several PH MPs have also claimed that their allocations have been frozen since the new government took over.

Muhyiddin’s announcement follows after Malaysia registered its 11th Covid-19 death today with 1,306 Covid-19 cases reported to date.

Malaysia also entered the sixth day of the movement control order (MCO) currently enforced nationwide that will last until March 31.

Muhyiddin also said he hoped this initiative and the government’s move to reduce the statutory contribution rate for employees by four per cent (from 11 per cent to seven per cent) will put more money in workers’ pockets to purchase their daily necessities.

The reduced rate of contribution set to take effect on April 1, as announced by the previous Pakatan Harapan government, was intended to cushion the blow from the economic fallout following the global Covid-19 outbreak.