When Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, the Prime Minister of the Perikatan Nasional government at that time announced the Movement Control Order (MCO) on March 18, 2020, many citizens’ daily routines were affected by it, especially the civil servants. Many of them have played a vital role in assisting the government in combating COVID-19 and willingly risking their lives in saving the rakyat. Hence, several initiatives and schemes were introduced and extended for civil servants in order for them to serve the citizens better and express gratitude towards them.

Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN) for civil servants

"The Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN) initiative really helped me and my husband in terms of buying household necessities. Since the government implemented more stringent requirements in the Movement Control Order (MCO), we have spent all of our money on groceries for cooking because it is far cheaper to eat home-cooked food,” said Nurul Nadhirah, 29.

“As a teacher, I also managed to receive Alat Bantuan Pengajar incentive, worth RM100 from the PN government. This incentive is useful for school teachers as we were able to buy two to three months worth of internet data in order to provide a stable internet connectivity for online classes”.

A token of appreciation to volunteers

As a token of appreciation for front-line civil servants in the battle against the coronavirus, the government has announced that doctors and medical staff will receive a special allowance of RM400, under the Pakej Rangsangan Ekonomi Prihatin Rakyat (PRIHATIN). 

Dr. Nurdini, 26, who has volunteered to help the frontliners during the pandemic period have received allowances from working at the PPV center (Pusat Pemberian Vaksin). These allowances have helped her as an emergency fund, especially during the COVID period.

 i-Sinar and i-Lestari provide an immediate positive impact to the economy

Nik Ahmad, 38, expressed his delight when the government announced the EPF application for the RM10,000 special withdrawal facility. He believed that was one of the greatest actions taken by the Perikatan Nasional government since Malaysia's economy was not flourishing at the moment and many people were affected by the sudden Movement Control Order (MCO).

“Even though I did not receive any financial aid as I received full salary during the whole pandemic period, I believe that cash assistance such as BPN and EPF i-Sinar and i-Lestari helped the majority of the people. This kind of initiative indeed brings temporary positive effects to those people, allowing them to rise up due to the hardship faced by them during the pandemic.”

A better initiative for women and people

Nurul Fadzilah Kamaluddin, Candidate for P118 Setiawangsa, has delivered her best hope for this upcoming election. 

“If I was to win in the election, I will create ‘Dapur Urus Setia’ with the same concept as a soup kitchen. We intend to create this to combat malnutrition among the people in the government housing programs (PPR). Another interesting initiative is that we would like to establish ‘Setia Wanita Prihatin’, whereby we will provide free legal assistance to women that are persecuted,” said Nur Fadzilah Kamaluddin. 

Perikatan Nasional has delivered the best initiatives for the people during the most crucial time. From financial assistance to increased allowances for civil servants, these actions serve as a token of government gratitude for assisting millions of citizens during the pandemic. Through their PN Best Manifesto, they will continue to strive for citizens' welfare.

Watch the interview video HERE.