KUALA LUMPUR: Gerakan president Datuk Dr Dominic Lau today warned the government not to touch the benefits enjoyed by civil servants.
Citing the statement of the Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs), he called for pensions to be retained, given the low basic salaries of civil servants.
"I am disappointed with the recent announcement by the Madani government to abolish pensions for newly appointed government employees.
"This is a wrong and unacceptable direction from (Prime Minister) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
"This seems to be an effort to hide the inadequacies and failures in his administration of Malaysia," Lau said in a statement today.
He urged the prime minister not to forget the sacrifices and hard work of the civil servants in safeguarding the nation from the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The Madani government should not touch civil servants as they have contributed significantly and served on the frontline in times of health and economic crises," he said.
Lau also voiced his support for abolishing pensions for members of parliament.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi announced the proposed new pension scheme for the civil service last week.
Under the scheme, newly recruited civil servant will contribute to retirement schemes like the Employee Provident Fund (EPF) and Social Security Organisation (Perkeso).