KUCHING - The Defence Ministry is reviewing applications by 19 former soldiers who were dismissed for misconduct and not recognised as Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) veterans, said Deputy Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ikmal Hisham Abdul Aziz
He said Senior Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein will announce the results of their applications soon.
"The dismissals involved former soldiers whose services were terminated in the past 10 to 15 years (and) did not serve during the Independence,” he told the media after the ceremony to present the Pingat Jasa Malaysia (PJM) award to MAF Veterans at the Sarawak-state level here today.
In June, Hishammuddin had tweeted that a MAF Veterans Recognition Advisory Committee had been set up to consider the issue.
The applications were among the demands by the MAF veterans since the dismissed soldiers could not enjoy the benefits and facilities provided if they are not recognised as veterans.
Earlier, Ikmal Hisham awarded the PJM to 713 MAF veterans at a leading hotel here.
The PJM award, which has been implemented since March 3, 2005, is in recognition of the military personnel’s bravery, courage, sacrifice and loyalty in contributing toward Malaysia’s freedom from the threat of communist terrorists.
Ikmal Hisham said that, to date, a total of 31,221 MAF veterans had received the PJM and he called for the cooperation of corporate firms in Sarawak to implement the recruitment of MAF veterans who are still productive by offering a better salary scheme.
"There are several examples of this in Sarawak, like the hiring of 80 veterans to work as part of the Immune Belt Enforcement Team (IBET) and 40 others employed to work with the Sarawak Coast Guard,” he said. - BERNAMA