Civil servants to get RM400, retirees RM200

PUTRAJAYA: The government has agreed to provide a RM400 special aid for civil servants in Grade 41 and below, and RM200 for retirees.

This was announced by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad after the cabinet meeting yesterday.

Last year, during the 2018 Budget tabling, the previous Barisan Nasional government announced a special aid payment of RM1,500 for 1.6 million civil servants to help them prepare for Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

In January, RM1,000 was given out, while the remaining RM500 would have been given before Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

The nation’s 743,000 government pensioners, meanwhile, would have received RM850, where RM500 was given in January, while the remaining would have been given before Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

Cuepacs president Datuk Azih Muda said the RM500 payment to civil servants, which was approved by Parliament during the previous Budget on Oct 27, was already set aside in the country’s planning.

The payment, he said, was to help civil servants ahead of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, and was part of the 2018 Budget allocation.

“Today, the new government has cut RM100 from the approved allocation.

“We hoped that the aid would be extended in view of the festivities, but it doesn’t mean that we are protesting (the government’s decision to reduce the payment). We had expected (the payment) to be more,” he said.

On whether the remaining RM100 should be channelled later, Azih said Cuepacs was confident that the government could improve the civil service in the long run.

He said he was hoping a better form of aid could be channelled at the federal level to empower the civil service.

“We thank the government for its attention to the welfare of civil servants ahead of Hari Raya Aidilfitri. This Hari Raya ‘bonus’ can help staff in buying essential items for their children.

“This ( payment) is long awaited by civil servants. Thank you, Dr Mahathir and the government for their empathy towards civil servants.”