The Star Malaysia

Fund managed well, says Fomca CEO as members give thumbs up

- By P. ARUNA aruna@thestar.com.my

This is a good sign amid the current global economic and market uncertaint­ies.

— DATUK PAUL SELVARAJ

PETALING JAYA: Consumer and worker groups applauded the Employees Provident Fund’s announceme­nt of a 6% dividend for its members.

“This is a good sign amid the current global economic and market uncertaint­ies,” said Fomca CEO Datuk Paul Selvaraj yesterday.

He said it was an indication that “things were being managed well” by the Fund.

MTUC secretary-general Abdul Halim Mansor said it was good news for employees, although he said the 6% fell short of their expectatio­ns of a 6.3% payout.

“The EPF should aggressive­ly invest in internatio­nal equities and property to ensure better returns instead of concentrat­ing on the domestic market,” he said.

He added that the Fund should be more “hands-on” and take ownership on its investment­s instead of merely acting as a financier.

Abdul Halim also urged the body to reduce its estimated 30% spending on soft loans to the Government and to focus instead on investment­s that could generate better returns.

Malaysian Employers Federation executive director Shamsuddin Bardan agreed that the Fund needed to improve on its investment portfolio to increase the dividend rate.

“The Fund’s performanc­e over the past three years in terms of dividend declaratio­n could have been better,” he said, comparing the 6.0% rate to the Malaysian Armed Forces Fund, which recently announced a 15% payout to its contributo­rs.

He said EPF needed to look at portfolios that give better yield to boost its returns and dividend payouts.

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