MEMBERS of parliament have welcomed a proposal to do away with their retirement benefits but do not want a decision to be made hastily. 

Reacting to former Treasury Research Institute director-general Mohamad Abdullah Kari’s suggestion, the lawmakers said they were open to considering alternative plans. 

Abdullah had said cabinet ministers and other lawmakers should be removed from the pension scheme and registered with the Employees Provident Fund (EPF). 

He said it was unfair that some MPs only served for five years but enjoyed lifelong retirement benefits. 

“The proposal should be looked at holistically,” Petaling Jaya MP Lee Chean Chung told The Malaysian Insight. 

“Anyway, why single out MPs?” he asked. 

The PKR lawmaker said retirement benefits were meant to prevent MPs from being financially vulnerable after leaving public office, so any move to remove it should be discussed comprehensively. 

Lee said these benefits hardly made a dent in the country’s finances. 

“The civil servants make up a larger proportion (of costs),” he added. 

Lee’s fellow party member, Gopeng MP Tan Kar Hing, agreed.  

“In all honesty, it doesn’t account for a significant portion of (the government’s) expenditure.” 

Tan said to truly save costs, the focus should be on reducing administrative expenses. 

“Improving administrative efficiency, reducing unnecessary administrative costs and overlapping jurisdictions among departments will bring about a significant increase in cost savings,” he added. 

Bukit Bintang MP Fong Kui Lun also thought there should be discussions “to explore better alternatives”. 

He said some MPs, like those in Kuala Lumpur, had to shoulder some expenses. 

“We MPs must serve the people wholeheartedly, and sometimes when we lack manpower, we have to dig into our own pockets to hire people. 

“We get no help from the state government or local councils,” he said. 

Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman supports the move to cut lawmakers’ retirement benefits. 

The Muar MP posted on social media that all politicians, including himself, should not enjoy them. 

He pointed out that politicians’ retirement compensations were several times higher than those of civil servants who had served the nation for decades. 

He criticised the fact that politicians could receive these benefits immediately upon being elected. 

“Furthermore, there are different levels for ministers, members of parliament, and state assembly members, so we should consider including politicians in the EPF, just like everyone else,” he said. – September 27, 2023.