Govt pensioners stand to lose from new scheme if civil servant salary not adjusted, says Kupekmas president

JOHOR BARU, July 4 — The government’s proposed new pension scheme, giving a flat rate of a 2 per cent annual increment, should not be introduced without a new salary adjustment for all civil servants, said Malaysian Government Retirees Club (Kupekmas) president, Datuk Omar Osman.

He said the salary adjustment was important to ensure that the benefits received by the more than a million government pensioners are better than what they get currently.

“Approximately 80 per cent of more than one million members are in the M40 and B40 groups, with some drawing only a salary of around RM1,000 when they were in service.

“So, the annual increase of 2 per cent in itself is not too huge. However, if it is implemented without any new salary adjustment, many government pensioners will be affected,” said Omar to reporters at the Johor chapter Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) office in Larkin here today.

The former Cuepacs president was commenting on the Federal Court’s dismissal last week of an earlier appeal by the government and the Public Service Department (PSD) director-general against a Court of Appeal decision to declare an amended pension law null and void.

Following that, Omar said he hopes that the government will speed up the salary adjustment of civil servants which will indirectly also benefit the current pensioners.

He said many pensioners have expressed their apprehension about the current higher cost of living as well as various economic uncertainties.

“Kupekmas does not want the pensioners to lose out on the benefits that they have been receiving for the past 10 years, without it being replaced by other initiatives.

“We also do not want the pension rate to revert to the previous pension rate, even after the 2 per cent annual increase is implemented,” said Omar, adding that the government should consider the past services and sacrifices made by the pensioners while they were in service.

Last Tuesday, it was reported that the Federal Court had dismissed an appeal by the government and the PSD director-general against a Court of Appeal decision to declare an amended pension law null and void.

A five-member panel chaired by Court of Appeal president Tan Sri Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim ruled that both appellants’ appeals had no merit.

Chief Judge of Malaya Datuk Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah, when reading the unanimous decision, said the amendments made to Section 3 and 7 of the Pensions Adjustment (Amendment) Act 2013 would be less beneficial to the respondent.