Kuala Lumpur: The Court of Appeal has deferred its decision in an appeal brought by the government, the Malaysian Armed Forces Council, and two other parties against a High Court ruling in favor of pension adjustments for Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM) pensioners who retired before January 1, 2013. Justice Datuk Hashim Hamzah, who chaired the three-man panel, informed the parties involved that the decision date would be set during a case management session scheduled for February 3.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the panel, which included Datuk Wong Kian Kheong and Datuk Ismail Brahim, heard the appeal from the government, the Prime Minister, the Senior Defence Minister, and the Malaysian Armed Forces Council. They are appealing the High Court's decision that favored 50 retired ATM personnel, who had sued over pension adjustments.
During the proceedings, senior federal counsel Ahmad Hanir Hambaly @ Arwi, representing the government and three others, argued that pension adjustments for ATM retirees would occur when there is a salary revision. He stated that retired ATM personnel are not entitled to pension adjustments post-2012, as there had been no salary revisions until the recent MADANI government introduced the Public Service Remuneration System (SSPA).
Ahmad Hanir, with assistance from Federal Counsel M.Kogilambigai, noted five salary revisions from 2002 to 2012 and that the government had adjusted the ATM retirees' pensions accordingly. He argued that the Implementation Guidelines for Amendments to the Terms of Service of the Malaysian Armed Forces and the Implementation Letter on Rank Parity and Improvement of the Minimum Salary Schedule (JGMM) dated March 14, 2013, do not pertain to salary revision, hence the MAF retirees were not entitled to pension adjustment.
He further argued that the appellants had treated all MAF pensioners equally, regardless of retirement date, as pension adjustments are regulated under Regulations 54 of the Pensions Regulations 1982. He claimed the High Court judge erred in interpreting the 2013 Guideline and JGMM as depriving MAF retirees of pension adjustments.
Lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla, representing the MAF personnel, countered that the government failed to implement new pension adjustments for MAF retirees who retired before January 1, 2013. He highlighted a significant pension gap between those who retired before and after the specified date, attributing it to the 2013 Guideline, which introduced changes in service terms, including salary, allowance, and benefit improvements through JGMM. However, JGMM was not applicable to retirees before January 1, 2013.
On February 5 of the previous year, Judicial Commissioner Dr. Suzana Muhamad Said ruled that all MAF retirees before January 1, 2013, are entitled to pension adjustments equal to those who retired after the date. She stated the government violated provisions under Article 137 and/or Article 8 of the Federal Constitution, in conjunction with Section 187 of the Malaysian Armed Forces Act 1972, by not making the necessary adjustments for pre-2013 retirees.
The 50 MAF personnel of various ranks filed an originating summons on November 17, 2022, seeking a declaration that the defendants violated the Federal Constitution and the Malaysian Armed Forces Act 1972 by not implementing a new pension adjustment for retirees before January 1, 2013.