Over RM500m to maintain Armed Forces, Home Ministry quarters

Over RM500 million will be made available to maintain Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) personnel homes and to repair residential quarters and institutions under the Home Ministry to ensure the well-being of the country’s security forces, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced today.

“To assist affordable housing ownership among MAF personnel in phases, the government will build over 7,000 affordable housing units under the One Personnel, One Home (SASaR) programme in Kuala Lumpur.

“Under current regulations, personnel leaving the service or retiring without pension have to settle the balance of the Public Sector Home Financing Board (LPPSA) loans in full,” he said.

Anwar said this when presenting the 2023 Budget in the Dewan Rakyat in his capacity as finance minister today.

He said the government understands the situation faced by security force personnel and agreed the LPPSA should offer them the chance to repay the remainder of their loans as usual.

“The effort will enable 4,000 qualified borrowers to restructure their financing and 700 borrowers who will retire without pension annually to continue their repayments,” he said.

He added that the government also knew of the worries of armed forces veterans who faced difficulties in securing work after reaching the age of retirement.

“I am determined to ensure that veterans have jobs and access to training.

“This administration will implement the MAF Veterans’ Second Career Programme with the cooperation of the Armed Forces Fund Board,” he said.

Under this initiative, 5,000 veterans pensioning this year will be guaranteed either a job match or skill training to boost their chances of generating income, Anwar said.

The Veterans Affairs Department, along with other government agencies, will offer five three-month courses, including drone operation, cybersecurity, and aircraft maintenance, to boost the skills of 1,250 veterans.

The earlier budget for 2023 presented by the previous administration on Oct 7 last year amounted to RM372.3 billion, but could not be passed before Parliament was dissolved on Oct 10.

- Bernama