KUALA LUMPUR: A lawmaker has called for improved healthcare services for veterans and an end to what he described as a growing "hand-kissing culture" involving senior military officers and ministers.
Datuk Khlir Mohd Nor (PN-Ketereh) said it was acceptable for children to kiss their parents’ hands as a sign of respect, but not for generals to do the same to the Defence Minister.
"I want to criticise this culture a bit – kissing the minister’s hand. Stop it, please stop. I see this becoming viral now, generals kissing the minister’s hand, what is this?" he said during Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday (Dec 5).
"This is not right. With our parents, it’s fine. But kissing the Defence Minister’s hand is not right," he added.
Khlir also highlighted the treatment of Armed Forces veterans, saying the situation on the ground did not match the "nice" replies given in Parliament.
He said some retired servicemen were forced to wait for hours at government hospitals to get their medicine.
"Two days ago I went to Tuanku Mizan (Armed Forces Hospital). I saw elderly people, veterans with walking sticks, lining up to collect their medicine for up to three hours.
"I hope the deputy minister can fix this and tell the Veterans Affairs Department (JHEV) to (serve) them better," he said.
Deputy Defence Minister Adly Zahari, in his reply, said he took Khlir’s remarks as a reminder to everyone and elaborated on the government’s commitment to veterans’ healthcare.
He said both pensionable and non-pensionable veterans, as well as their dependants, were entitled to medical services, either through the Health Ministry or JHEV.
Adly said that in one recent case, medical treatment for a veteran’s wife reached RM250,000, with other claims also running into the hundreds of thousands of ringgit.
"The point we want to make is that whether services are provided through JHEV or the Health Ministry, pensionable and non-pensionable veterans will receive proper healthcare.
"There are isolated cases of delays, but overall we have met with the Health Ministry several times to ensure that, whether they are pensionable or not, their healthcare is given priority," he said.
Aminolhuda Hassan (PH-Sri Gading) later weighed in on the hand-kissing issue, saying it was ultimately a personal choice, although he acknowledged it was uncomfortable to see the matter raised in the august House.
He went on to ask about financial assistance for non-pensionable veterans, noting that the lack of support in the past had hit them hard.
Adly said 18,554 pensionable veterans were receiving healthcare support worth RM74mil through the Health Ministry.
He added that of the RM303mil allocated for veterans, nearly RM290mil went towards welfare and cost-of-living assistance, including RM500 a month for non-pensionable veterans and a RM300 top-up for pensioners whose income falls below the poverty line.
