Bill to protect senior citizens may be tabled early next year
KUALA LUMPUR: A proposed Bill to protect senior citizens may be tabled in Parliament early next year as the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry (KPWKM) completes further consultations, its minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri told the Dewan Rakyat today.
Nancy said KPWKM was in the final stage of drafting the Bill, which aims to strengthen the welfare of senior citizens and protect them from neglect, abuse and exploitation.
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She said the ministry was ready to bring the matter forward this year but needed to complete the required processes, including further engagement with stakeholders who had requested additional consultations.
“We are ready to present our intention to the Cabinet, but we have to wait because there is a queue.
“Our intention has already been included in the Cabinet memorandum meeting, so that also requires time.
“God willing, we are ready this year. However, for it to be tabled, maybe early next year,” she said.
The Bill was raised by Rodiyah Sapiee (Batang Sadong-GPS), who sought an update on its status and the social protection mechanisms being prepared for senior citizens as Malaysia moves towards becoming an ageing nation.
Nancy said the consultation process had taken longer because the government wanted to consider new proposals from stakeholders and ensure the proposed law was comprehensive, practical and suited to current needs.
She said protection for senior citizens remained in place while the Bill was being finalised, with existing laws and mechanisms continuing to provide safeguards, including the Penal Code, Domestic Violence Act 1994, Persons with Disabilities Act 2008 and Talian Kasih 15999.
On caregiver support, Nancy said KPWKM aimed to train 50,000 caregivers by 2030 as part of efforts to strengthen family- and community-based care.
She said nearly 3,000 caregivers had been trained so far, surpassing the ministry’s initial target of 2,000 for this year.
“For now, we are focusing more on training caregivers. As I mentioned earlier, the target was 2,000 this year, and now almost 3,000 have been trained.
“We are targeting 50,000 caregivers by 2030,” she said.
Nancy said the government’s position was that senior citizens should, where possible, be cared for within the family and community, with institutional care treated as a last resort.
“The government’s message is clear. The responsibility of caring for senior citizens is not a burden to be transferred arbitrarily.
“Instead, the family institution is the main line of care, while admission to elderly care institutions is the last resort after all support efforts at the family and community levels have been made,” she said.
In a supplementary question, Mumtaz Md Nawi (Tumpat-PN) asked whether the government intended to increase assistance for caregivers of bedridden patients or elderly persons, saying current assistance was insufficient for those who had to stop working to care for ageing family members.
Nancy said the ministry could not commit to additional measures for now, as it could not pre-empt any government decision or announcement.
“For caregivers, we cannot touch on that here. If there is something from the government, maybe it will be announced.
“We cannot commit to that first because we cannot pre-empt what we have applied for. We can only try and pray so that they get all that,” she said.
