IPOH - The Sultan of Perak Sultan Nazrin Shah and Raja Permaisuri of Perak Tuanku Zara Salim graced the royal banquet held in conjunction with the opening ceremony of the 34th Annual Delegates Conference of the Malaysian Government Pensioners Association (PPKM) 2023 here, tonight.
The royal couple was received by Perak Menteri Besar Saarani Mohamad and PPKM president Tan Sri Wan Mahmood Pawan Teh.
Delivering his speech at the ceremony, Saarani said that pensioners are part of an important asset in the efforts to engineer the country’s development due to their vast experience as civil servants in various fields including administration, education and security services.
"The public service sector has taught them everything about life, sacrifices and successes. The training, experience, interaction, relationships with colleagues and the network of departments where they work are valuable assets and learning experiences that push them to deliver the best service,” he added.
Also present was Perak PPKM president, who is also PPKM vice president Datuk Mohamed Hamzah.
Meanwhile, Wan Mahmood in his speech said Malaysia may become an ageing nation in 2030 with people aged 60 and over consisting of 15.3 per cent of the population, adding that in 2025 the number of Malaysians is predicted to increase to 34.21 million, of which 5.2 million are senior citizens.
"This prediction is scary, if no proactive action is taken, it will be a burden to the country...I call on the government to help us in addressing the ageing phenomenon in our country," he said. - BERNAMA