Allow for immediate full tenure of service for calculation of pensions

IT is heartening and gratifying to note that the Government is going all out to ensure that its promises to the people are being fulfilled.

How apt the slogan chosen for this year’s Merdeka celebration: Janji ditepati!

The recently announced 2013 Budget is exemplary of a government that is sensitive to the needs of its people and mindful of fulfilling all promises it had made to them. Syabas!

As a 70-plus-year-old pensioner, I have a wish before I meet my Maker and that is: our Government would honour an agreement reached with the Pensioners Association during the time of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s administration that pension calculations be based on the full tenure of service and not on a maximum of 25 years of service, terms and conditions applied.

I served a total of 35 years and four months. Though pension calculations have since been adjusted to be based on a maximum of 30 years’ service, for pensioners like me and many others, we feel “short-changed” of some years of our service.

Some of us have moved on (never to return), and regrettably taken along with them an “unfulfilled promise”!

Now the new optional retirement age is set at 60. In the years to come, many more will serve the civil service for periods longer than 30 years. There is no need to go over the arguments for pension calculations based on full tenure of service.

That has already been dealt with and consensus reached. With the new retirement age, a better and fuller pension has become the additional reason for senior government staff to continue till full term rather than opting out earlier.

Their experience and talents must be tapped to the full. Their quitting early will be a loss to the civil service.

Therefore, in the spirit of Janji ditepati, I appeal to the Government to allow for full-tenure pension calculations with immediate effect. Time is running out for me and many others in the same boat.

LYC
Seremban

THE STAR