Consult EPF on new retirement age

TAWAU, June 17, 2012: The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) should have been consulted before the Government rushes into extending the minimum retirement age to 60, said Tawau Member of Parliament Datuk Chua Soon Bui.

Being a stakeholder in EPF, the Government should be responsible when the motion was tabled in Parliament on Thursday as it is closely related to the eligibility of workers to claim their money at the age of 55.

"It's another rushing without consultation with the stakeholder," she said Saturday.

Although the move is widely accepted in many countries, she said, an optional retirement age of 55 should also be given.

"While some countries go up to 65 years old to retire like Singapore, the option should take into consideration of women due to their child bearing, menopausal and other health factors.

"Although there is no denying the longevity of women is much longer than men," said Chua, adding that some may opt to retire early to start their own business.

Chua also proposed to the Ministry of Finance to work with EPF in the matter.

"At this moment, 60 per cent of the EPF money has been borrowed by the Barisan Nasional (BN) government through its agencies, Malaysia Airlines and low-cost housing," she said.

According to her, currently there are about 12 million contributors nationwide.

Extracted from Daily Express