PETALING JAYA: Nearly 60% of army veterans who receive monthly pensions are living below the poverty line, the Veterans’ Association of Malaysian Armed Forces (PVATM) said.
Its president Sharuddin Omar said of the figure, 95% of them were from the lower ranks and drew low salaries when they were in the service, Harian Metro reported.
“They fall into the ‘poor’ category when they retire,” the Malay daily quoted him as saying, adding that those who retired before 2004 received a pension of RM1,000 or less.
“For example, a warrant officer who retired in 1990 would receive a pension of around RM500 to RM600 only. How about those (who retired) as privates?”
Sharuddin added that the veterans’ association had never stopped seeking pension adjustment based on the provisions outlined in the Federal Constitution.
He also said that Putrajaya had been urged to adjust rates since 2014, yet no such action had been taken till today.
He said around 170,000 army veterans were aged above 60 and many suffered health problems due to their training and duties during their service period. - FMT
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