I want duit raya too, Najib

Standfirst: It's unfair that only civil servants and pensioners are getting special Ramadan and Shawal aid.

COMMENT

It seems that our beloved Prime Minister has announced a special financial aid to civil servants to help them through Ramadan and Syawal. RM500 and RM250 duit raya will be given out to civil servants and pensioners who are in Grade 54 and below. And according to our PM, who is also our wise and intelligent Finance Minister, this payment will cost us RM1 billion.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I wonder why only civil servants are entitled to some duit raya. How about the rest of us? I want some duit raya too.
Clearly, the rest of us incur expenses for Ramadan and Syawal too, but instead of depending on subsidies, we have learned to control our spending, ensuring we do it within our means. We save where it is possible and we put aside some funds for baju raya and kuih raya.

Why can’t the civil servants do the same? Shouldn’t they also learn to save for Ramadan and Syawal like the rest of us instead of being trained to wait for windfalls during festive seasons?

It breaks my heart to realise that Najib cares only for civil servants. Why the favouritism, Najib? Did I not contribute to the wealth of the nation?

I’m sure the RM1 billion allocation is coming from the funds that are meant for the betterment of the nation as a whole. If it is from the RM6 billion GST earnings or from the income tax collected, shouldn’t I be entitled for duit raya since I contributed to those earnings too? Why is it that my contribution to the country is being used to assist the civil servants? How does helping to ease their financial burden benefit me?

Is this what Najib meant when he said “GST will help ease the burden of the rakyat”? Oh Najib, your unfairness is making me sulk now.

There are 1.4 million civil servants in Malaysia. More than 78% of them celebrate Ramadan and Syawal. I wonder how many of the 1.4 million are taxpayers? Why do the majority of taxpayers have to bear the cost for their lemangs and ketupats and baju raya?

Every year we incur RM65 billion to pay the wages, allowances and bonuses of employees in our bloated civil service. But despite pampering them with various perks and financial assistance, we have not seen improvements in their service to the public.

To put it bluntly, if my hard earned cash is going to be used to pamper the civil servants, I want to see some improvement in the service rendered to me. Instead of giving the civil servants duit raya, why not give them a bonus based on productivity?

If the government is in a charitable mood to help the people, why not ease the burden of those below the poverty line? I am sure those receiving monthly financial assistance from the Welfare Department will appreciate the extra sum with the Hari Raya a few weeks away.

As a taxpayer, I will be more than happy if my money is used to improve the living conditions of Malaysians who are really in need instead of giving it to those who receive their monthly wages despite performing below average and being absent from work.

Oh well, looks like there is no hope for me to get duit raya from Najib this year. So kids, if you are reading this, Mak is so sorry. There will be no baju raya this year. Maybe next year, ok?