SEREMBAN: The Negri Sembilan government will give a one-off RM1,000 payment to cancer patients next year to ease their financial burden, says Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun.
The Negri Sembilan Mentri Besar said RM1mil will be set aside for the purpose under the state budget for 2026.
"This is the first time we are providing this assistance, as cancer cases have been on the rise.
"Anyone born in Negri Sembilan and diagnosed with cancer or already undergoing treatment will be eligible," he told reporters after tabling the state budget here on Friday (Dec 5).
He said the state government will consider allocating more funds in future to help more patients if the number of applicants outweighs the allocation.
Aminuddin said the move was also to give moral support to the patients and to remind them that they were not alone as they battled the disease.
He said the state government will also spend RM500,000 in cash assistance to help patients buy orthopaedic implants and another RM500,000 to those who had to undergo an arteriovenous fistula procedure for haemodialysis treatment.
Earlier, Aminuddin tabled a RM640mil state budget for 2026 with a RM610mil projected revenue.
Aminuddin said that although the state government had tabled deficit budgets for the previous four consecutive years from 2022 to 2025, it managed to record a surplus each time.
He said as of Friday, the state had secured a revenue of RM655.8mil although the projected income was only RM590mil.
The total revenue collected for 2024 was RM636mil.
"With almost another month to go, we expect this year's revenue to be even higher and this is a record for the state administration," he said.
Aminuddin said the state also expected to secure new investments totalling RM8bil next year.
Separately, Aminuddin said due to the exceptional performance of state government employees, his administration has agreed to reward them with a minimum two-month bonus which will be paid in January and March next year.
"There will also be a performance-based bonus, introduced for the first time, of a maximum of one month.
"My estimate is that some 20% of the employees will receive an additional month's bonus, meaning that they will receive a total of three months' bonus, while the others will be rewarded proportionately based on their performance," he added.
