KUALA LUMPUR: MCA vice-president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Jeck Seng is the latest elected representative to volunteer to have his member of parliament's (MP) pension removed.
His move came after PKR's Pantai Jerejak assemblyman Fahmi Zainol offered to be the first politician to have his pension cut.
Wee, who is also Tanjung Piai MP, said he was willing to do so but said the government should not touch the pensions of civil servants.
"I am willing and prepared to forgo my pension as a member of parliament. However, I will not be able to stomach seeing civil servants, especially personnel in the lower ranks, being forced into the same situation.
He said while he acknowledged that the nation's financial constraints have posed difficulties for the government today, the move cannot be used an excuse to penalise the people, including civil servants via policies.
"It should be noted that most of these civil servants serve our nation and citizens by executing their responsibilities in their respective government ministries, departments and agencies. These civil servants also serve over a long period of time, usually stretching decades.
"Any government policy requires deep research before implementation, in particular, its impact on the common layperson and not abrupt announcements which cause unnecessary confusion and anxieties.
"Scrap pensions of MPs and assemblymen, but please don't touch the pension of civil servants," he said in a statement today.
On Wednesday, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi announced the proposed new pension scheme for the civil service. Under this method, new hires in the civil service will contribute to retirement schemes like the Employee Provident Fund (EPF) and Social Security Organisation (Socso).
Wee, however, said he was puzzled at the development as civil servants already have an option of selecting either the pension scheme or contribute towards the EPF.
He said the slew of new taxes this year, such as the Sales and Services Tax (SST) being raised from six per cent to eight per cent, are also affecting civil servants.
He said MCA has repeatedly recommended to the government to reinstate the Goods and Services Tax (GST) to help generate revenue for the country, which would then be returned to the people.
"A name change has also been advocated as an alternative should the current government eschew acknowledging the success of the Barisan Nasional government or being seen as U-turning.
"What matters is that the tax system must be transparent and fair like the GST. These pressing scenarios highlighted above are the real causes as to what is happening to our country and leaving adverse impacts on our citizens."
