Discuss plan to abolish pension scheme during Bumiputera congress, says KJ
Published on: Saturday, February 17, 2024
By:
FMT, Rex Tan, Elill Easwaran
Khairy Jamaluddin said the government should discuss its proposal to abolish the pension scheme for new civil servants at the congress to show it is serious about safeguarding the social security of Bumiputeras. (Facebook pic)
PETALING JAYA: The government’s proposal to abolish the pension scheme for new civil servants should be discussed at the upcoming Bumiputera economic congress, says former minister Khairy Jamaluddin.
In the latest episode of his “Keluar Sekejap” podcast, the former Umno Youth chief said it was important to explore the topic at the congress to be held from Feb 29 to March 2 as the majority of civil servants are Bumiputeras, and the proposal could potentially affect their social security.
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“Although this issue involves all races and communities, in reality, 90% of our civil servants are Malays or Bumiputeras,” said Khairy, who has led the health as well as the youth and sports ministries.
“So they (the government) can easily bring up this subject at the congress to show that they support (Bumiputeras’ social security).”
The podcast’s co-host, Shahril Hamdan, said the congress should also look into the Bumiputera community’s financial security as their retirement funds have been severely hit by several rounds of EPF withdrawals.
Last March, EPF said the median savings of its Bumiputera contributors had plunged by 70% from RM15,500 to RM4,900 following four withdrawal programmes during the Covid-19 pandemic.
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This was in comparison to the 40% decrease in the median savings of Indian contributors (RM25,700 to RM14,900) and the 1% drop in the median savings of Chinese contributors (from RM45,800 to RM45,200) during the same period.
“The congress should talk about the Bumiputeras’ savings and (how to) strengthen their financial security, because those withdrawals have affected the Malays the most compared to other communities,” said Shahril.
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The former Umno information chief also said he was looking forward to discussions about educational and human capital reforms, as well as technical and vocational education and training, during the congress.
“I think these will be the two most important factors to get more Bumiputeras involved in the economy,” he said.
The congress will focus on 10 main clusters, including strengthening the halal industry, Sabah and Sarawak’s Bumiputera economy, and new technology.
It is expected to be attended by more than 3,000 participants, including those from the Malay, Kadazandusun, Dayak, Iban and Orang Asli communities.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim previously said the government also wants Chinese and Indian chambers of commerce to take part.
KJ questions Anwar’s claim about hardcore poverty eradication
On Anwar’s recent statement that Kuala Lumpur, Melaka and Negeri Sembilan have eradicated hardcore poverty, Khairy said it was important to take a more multifaceted approach to the topic.
Questioning the methodology used to reach such a conclusion, he said factors such as living conditions, nutrition, education and health should be taken into account when calculating poverty rates, rather than just focussing on household income as the sole indicator.
“When we look at it from a multi-dimensional perspective, the reality on the ground is very different,” he said.
Malaysia introduced the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) in the 11th Malaysia Plan, which takes into account monetary and non-monetary aspects of deprivation such as sub-standard education, poor health and inadequate living conditions.
However, it is uncertain whether the MPI is used when calculating poverty rates in the country.
The government refers to the hardcore poor as those living in households with a monthly income of less than RM1,169, while those in absolute poverty have an income of less than RM2,208.
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