PARLIAMENT | A senior Umno MP said today the blanket loan moratorium extension and permission to withdraw up to RM10,000 from the Employees Providence Fund (EPF) is a "life preserver" to help the people "drowning" from the impact of Covid-19.
Debating the Supply Bill 2020, Noh Omar (BN-Tanjung Karang) said the government should offer assistance to the rakyat in the current challenging times.
"I see this moratorium as a life preserver... Why is it so hard for us in government to offer it to them?
"The rakyat is drowning, we should hand them a life preserver for their safety. We can take it back once they have recovered," Noh (above) said in the Dewan Rakyat.
He further said that BN's conditional support as previously raised by former premier Najib Abdul Razak is unlike the Puteri Gunung Ledang folklore, a point made by Ahmad Fadhli Shaari (PAS-Pasir Mas) in rebutting the Pekan MP.
Najib in his debate last Wednesday said BN's support to pass the budget is conditional upon Perikatan Nasional's agreement to extend the blanket loan moratorium, as well as granting permission for the RM10,000 EPF withdrawal.
Noh added that there would be little meaning to long-term savings if it could not be used in times of hardship, as he insisted that the EPF remains financially capable of granting the requested withdrawals.
EPF CEO Tunku Alizakri Alias recently said discussions are ongoing with the Finance Ministry and insisted the fund would not mortgage the future of its members with reckless decisions or be influenced by public pressure on the issue. - Mkini
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