NGOs submitted a memorandum demanding EPF emergency withdrawal

SHAH ALAM - Pertubuhan Gagasan Inovasi Rakyat Malaysia (PGIRM), The Malaysian Muslim Consumers Association (PPIM) and Global Human Rights Federation (GHRF) have submitted a memorandum and petition to object to the Employees Provident Fund's (EPF) Second Account Support Facility (FSA2).

The memorandum also demanded that the emergency EPF withdrawal 2.0 to be approved immediately.

PGRIM president Azmi Mohd Tahir said the government's decision to offer FSA2 was seen as not helpful at all to the affected contributors but rather burdening them by adding to their existing debt.

"In fact, it gives an opportunity to contributors who were not affected and have a stable income to take advantage of this FSA2.

"Together with PGIRM, PPIM and GHRF today are contributors from every corner of the country.

"Despite being in a dire state, they still came to show solidarity of protest and demand that the EPF withdrawal can be approved immediately," he said after submitting the memorandum at the EPF Tower, in Kwasa Damansara on Friday.

An estimated 50 contributors were gathered outside the EPF Tower to object the FSA2 and to demand the EPF 2.0 emergency withdrawal be approved immediately.

Azmi said most contributors that were affected are in desperate need of cash money where some would go bankrupt or blacklisted in the Central Credit Reference Information System (CCRIS), Credit Tip-Off Service (CTOS) and Credit Counselling and Debt Management Agency (AKPK).

"Are these contributors eligible to make a bank loan and to use the FSA2 offered?

"It had been reported that the condition for FSA2 was to have a minimum balance of RM3,000 in Account 2.

"This is also one of the factor why the FSA2 is not helping the affected group because majority of the affected contributors no longer have a balance or a very small amount of balance ," he said.

In the meantime, Azmi said the targeted EPF withdrawal were short-term, long-term and effective solution to provide immediate cash to affected contributors without having to add new debts and commitments.

"For a long-term plan, the government can help to ensure the account balance of contributors who had withdraw their money, to increase by creating recovery programmes such as providing employment opportunities without age and health condition limits as well as aligning the per capita income.

"PGIRM, PPIM and GHRE can not see what other alternatives the government can offer as an immediate and effective solutions for the people's various problems especially contributors whose balance have been significantly reduced.

"It doesn't even include the people who was excluded from receiving aid because they didn't update their information," he said.