KUALA LUMPUR, July 27 — The announcement of the Special Appreciation Aid for civil servants and retirees has been seen as the initial proof of the government’s commitment to reviewing the salary scheme for civil servants in the near future.
Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) president Datuk Adnan Mat said that the announcement of the special aid is also a manifestation of the government’s appreciation for the contributions of civil servants towards the country’s progress.
“Cuepacs and the entire public and civil services workforce will continue to strive diligently in supporting the government’s aspiration to implement reforms in administrative affairs and service delivery to the people,” he said in a statement today.
Earlier today, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim when launching the ‘MADANI Economy: Empowering the People’ initiative said that the government will give a special appreciation aid of RM300 to civil servants of Grade 56 and below.
He also announced a similar aid of RM200 to retirees, including those currently receiving their pensions including pension recipients issued under the pension law, EPF retirees who retire from public service, as well as pensionable and non-pensionable veterans.
Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, said the announcement on the special aid is made while the review of the civil servants’ salaries and allowances is being done, and that the payment of this aid is expected to be made within two weeks from now.
As such, Adnan said Cuepacs is confident that the government’s planned efforts and initiatives will benefit the people, but sufficient time and space should be given to the Prime Minister to lead the country towards a better direction.
However, he said it is also hoped that the government will not delay the review of civil servants’ salaries, as previously mentioned by Anwar, including the readjustment of fixed allowances that should be received by civil servants, especially as they were also affected by the rising cost of living.
Furthermore, he said the public service salary scheme is still using the Malaysian Remuneration System (SSM), which has been slightly improved since its introduction on Nov 1, 2002.
“It is high time for the salary scheme to be reviewed according to the current economic environment so that it remains relevant to the increasing cost of living,” he added.
