MP moots 'hardship allowance' for civil servants from Sabah, Sarawak

PARLIAMENT Putrajaya has been urged to include "hardship allowance" for civil servants from Sabah and Sarawak who are working in Peninsula Malaysia in the next national budget.

Teresa Kok (DAP-Seputeh), during the debate on the Supplementary Supply 2016 (Bill) 2017 today, said civil servants originating from those two states have a hard time coping with living expenses.

"Everything is expensive, they have to pay toll fees but they don't have hardship allowances despite the price of goods and renting houses here is more expensive than in Sabah and Sarawak," she said.

Presently, civil servants serving in the interior regions of Sabah and Sarawak are paid a "hardship allowance" ranging from RM500 to RM1,500.

Meanwhile, Kok also urged Putrajaya to allocate more money for Parliament's upkeep, by building more elevators as only one could be used whenever the prime minister was present.

She added that there were also insufficient parking space.

"Many media practitioners have to park at both sides of the Parliament's entrance and I received complaints that the police have issued summonses.

"Isn't this making things harder for government officials and the media?"

Kok also urged the government to consider relocating the room allocated for the press which is currently underground to a higher level.

Her suggestion drew cheers and desk thumping from media practitioners.

Last week, reporters at Parliament have petitioned Dewan Rakyat speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia against his decision to ban reporters from the Parliament lobby.- Mkini