KUALA LUMPUR: The decision to retain the withdawal age limit for the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) contributors has been welcomed by members of the public as well as the delegates to the Invest Malaysia 2015.
CIMB Investment Bank Berhad senior associate of equity research Azman Hussin, 33, said the people must have been be happy to hear the announcement made by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on the withdrawal of retirement savings at the age of 55.
“I think 55 is the better option because some of the civil servants and private sector employees will take early retirement at 55 and might not be working until 60 years old.
“Furthermore, the cost of living is also rising each year where we might need to utilise the savings for kids and other personal use…retaining at 55 is better I feel,” he told Bernama when met at the summit here, yesterday.
Najib, during his speech at the summit, announced that the EPF members would retain their right to withdraw their savings at the age of 55.
The EPF recently proposed that the withdrawal age be extended to 60 and the proposal did not go down well with the contributors.
Meanwhile, a delegate of Invest Malaysia Charles Anthony, 27, said that the announcement showed that the government was trying its best to fulfil the needs and wants of the people.
“This is why we had the I-Akaun online survey and when the announcement was made based on the initial feedback from the survey, I felt happy that our views have been heard,” he added.
The online survey by EPF started on Tuesday and will end on May 5, 2015. Corporate delegate Chong Siew Chan, 41, said that some wished to use their savings to travel with their spouse or family members after retirement when their EPF savings would become handy.
“Very few people will be traveling around at the age of 60, especially those having health issues and age of 55 is just nice for everyone,” he said.
At the same time, he also said that flexibility had to be given to those who wished to withdraw at the age of 60. — Bernama