Malaysian Not Saving Enough For Children Education

Imagine this scenario – your child has worked hard, done well in his examinations and earned himself a coveted spot in an institution of higher learning. He is just one step away from pursuing his dreams of further studies and all that is left is to pay for his fees.

However, this ideal situation is marred by the escalating costs of higher education. With no funds kept aside for education, the child needs to forgo their ambition of going to the university.

Imagine his disappointment, having worked so hard to realise his dreams.

This is a real situation for many families, who failed to realise how important it is to save early for their child’s further education.

The awareness on the importance of saving, however, is still low among Malaysians.

National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) senior general manager for public relations and event management Abdul Ghaffar Yusop said the awareness of saving for tertiary education was very low among Malaysians, especially the Malays. 

He said the common excuses given for not doing so due to low salaries, and most parents were placing their hopes on getting a loan to fund their children’s education.

Abdul Ghaffar said the reality is that the government is responsible for providing the infrastructure and facilities, but parents must bear the responsibility of providing for their children’s education.

He added, a majority of Malaysians only started putting aside money for their children’s education once they entered secondary school.

“In this Internet age, everything, including banking, is at one’s fingertips. People are spending more than they can afford and the habit of saving is getting neglected.

“We want parents to change their perception and ‘save first and spend later’. Parents must make it a priority to put aside money for their children’s education so that they do not need to be burdened by debts when the time came for them to go to university. This also prevents the students from facing debts themselves as a result of these loans,” he said.

“Even if it was just RM1 a day, we must make them prioritise saving," he added.

Many do not know that by putting aside RM1 daily, they could start saving for their child’s education from the time their child is just a day old.

PTPTN’s Skim Simpanan Pendidikan Nasional (SSPN), via its SSPN- i Plus plan, allows parents to save from as little as RM30 monthly, and this plan also comes with Takaful insurance coverage benefits.

The coverage includes death and permanent disability, critical illness and hospital allowance.

“With a minimum commitment of RM30, parents also receive Takaful insurance protection should anything unfortunate should happen to them. This allows for some peace of mind and the child will still be able to continue studying,”.

“The SSPN- i Plus is the best gift we can give to each child,” said Abdul Ghaffar.

He advised parents to take advantage of the plans under PTPTN to save wisely and consistently for the benefit of their children.

“The gift of education is the one of the best gifts for the child’s future and with SSPN- i Plus, we can plan better to this end. As the Malay saying goes, ‘Sikit-Sikit lama-lama jadi bukit’, putting a little bit aside everyday will eventually grow into a sizeable investment for our children,” he added.

Introduced since 2015, the SSPN -i Plus offers competitive dividends, tax relief of up to RM12,000, insurance coverage of up to RM1 million based on package and no health check-up requirements for takaful protection.

Despite the obvious benefits to saving, only 10 per cent of parents, or 3 million, are saving in the scheme.

To encourage more parents to save, PTPTN is organising its Minggu Menabung SSPN which will be held at the One Utama Shopping Centre from Oct 5-7.

Abdul Ghaffar said the event, which is also in conjunction with World Savings Day on Oct 31, is a platform for the public to learn more about saving early and to start doing so.

“During the three-day programme, parents can come over to open an account for their children as well as participate in activities and win attractive prizes. There will also be performances by popular celebrities, lucky draws, colouring and puzzle solving contests, a talkshow, meet and greet with Didi & Friends and much more,”.

“The highlight of the event is on Oct 6, where parents will be able to open their accounts at selected shopping malls nationwide,” he added.

Road Bully - Tamed In Court

 A factory operator featured in a recent viral road rage video was fined RM1,500 by the magistrate’s court here today with committing mischief.

Magistrate Nur Azzuin Abdul Moati fined Muhamad Amir Muaz Ismail, 30, after he pleaded guilty to breaking the left side mirror of a car belonging to Lye Sein Tatt, 77, when the charge was read to him.

She also ordered Amir Muaz to be imprisoned for six months if he failed to settle the fine.

Amir Muaz admitted to committing the offence on Monday at the Bayan Indah roundabout in Bayan Lepas about 6.50pm on Sept 24.

He was charged under Section 427 of the Penal Code which carries a maximum two years’ imprisonment or fine or both upon conviction.

Assistant Superintendent Pang Meng Tuck prosecuted while Amir Muaz was represented by Edmund Anthony Haman.

Earlier, Edmund appealed to the court for a minimum fine, stressing that the accused was the sole breadwinner in his family. He also had to care for his mother.

“At the time of the incident, my client had acted as such out of anger after being labelled gangster. Also, this is his first offence

“My client also regretted that the incident occured and promised not to repeat it again,” he added.

Amir Muaz’s action was captured on camera and has since gone viral, courting widespread condemnation.

Amar Singh Is King

Police challenged fugitive blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin to lodge a report in the country over his claim that investigators stole over RM40 million during raids on residences linked to Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Bukit Aman Commercial Crimes Investigations Department (CCID) director Commissioner Datuk Seri Amar Singh also told the blogger to bring the evidence he has on the alleged crime.

The blogger wrote a post alleging that police seized RM160 million from Najib-linked property but declared that they only took RM116.7 million.

“First of all I will not pay heed to such a writer, who is more like a mercenary, with the frivolous and vexatious accusations against the police,” Amar said today.

“If he has such information that indeed RM43-odd million was stolen, I urge him to be brave enough to substantiate his claims and come lodge a police report in Malaysia and don’t hide behind the cyber curtain.”

Conversely, he said the blogger should be prepared to face the consequences if his report proves to be false.

Amar then detailed, in chronological order, the amounts seized from Najib-linked properties.

He explained that, on May 25, police raided the units at Pavilion Residences and recovered RM114 million in over 26 foreign currencies.

At a later press conference, Amar said police then revealed additional funds of around RM2 million, bringing the total to RM116.3 million in seized cash alone.

Having explained the facts of the seizures, Amar then ruled out the possibility of the cops supposedly carting away RM43.3 million in cash.

He said that 35 bags seized had contained the initial RM114 million in cash, meaning a figure of RM43.3 million would require at least 10 to 15 of such bags.

“How is it possible to move that many bags, with over 100 closed-circuit televisions around us, more than 50 policemen, together with reporters and cameraman all waiting for us?

“There is no way anything can be taken,” said Amar.

Amar then clarified that Najib himself had lodged a report to claim the RM43.3 million that supposedly belongs to Umno, but failed to substantiate his case when asked by investigators.

“A private investigator was called in to check on how the RM160 million was established, but even he was not able to substantiate how they came to that amount,” Amar explained.

Life Insurance Synergistic Partnerships

There is significant untapped potential for the insurance industry in Malaysia to increase its broader economic impact and contribute to the country's growth, says Bank Negara Malaysia governor Datuk Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus.

In her speech at the Malaysian Insurance Institute (MII) summit, Nor Shamsiah noted that insurance in Malaysia accounts for only 1.7% of gross domestic product and 5.8% of financial assets.

"Over the past few years, penetration (in terms of total premiums to GDP) for the industry remained low at 4.8%. Less than 40% of Malaysian citizens own a life insurance or family takaful policy. For the working population aged between 20 and 59 years old, this is higher at about 50%," she said.

She added that given the demands on the industry there should be a long-term view on investments in capacity and a focus on quality standards and operational efficiency. 

"It is therefore timely, if not more urgent, for institutions to consider synergistic partnerships to achieve the scale and competitive edge to lift performance and break into new markets."

Illustrating these demands, she said the industry has a responsibility towards helping to contain costs in the Malaysian medical and health insurance market, and ensuring the life, health and pension needs of an ageing population are met in a sustainable manner.

"In fact, the Malaysian medical and health insurance market has the highest average gross medical inflation. It was around 15.4% in 2018. It is expected to continue rising," she said.

Nor Shamsiah also said it is important for insurance companies to address the user experience via technological innovation. 

"For example, quality engagements with first-time buyers and the underserved will go a long way in closing the huge protection gap which remains our most important priority right now."

To facilitate innovation, she said BNM aims to lower barriers to innovation and competition via a regulatory sandbox to test new innovations, taking a proportionate approach to reduce compliance costs for the introduction of innovative solutions where risks to consumers are low, and developing a more coherent approach for ensuring legal and regulatory compatibility with new innovations. 

99 Caught in Macau Scam

Police have busted an investment scam syndicate based in the city here but conning victims in China, with the arrest of 99 people at a luxury office near KL Sentral, the biggest such bust made so far.

The suspects – 93 Chinese nationals and six Malaysians – had been operating the syndicate's call centre for a few months now.

 

Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Comm Datuk Seri Amar Singh said a Malaysian "Datuk Seri" in his 40s and a 14-year-old Malaysian boy were among those arrested.

“The syndicate followed the same modus operandi as Macau Scam syndicates.

“They acted as a so-called stockbrocking company, offering shares to the victims, they could get huge returns in their investment in a short time,” he told reporters at the CCID headquarters Friday.

Among the items seized were 169 mobile phones and 114 laptops, he added.

"The suspects used Voice-Over-Internet Protocol (VOIP) calls to pose as officials before tricking the victims into parting with their hard-earned money.

"We are working with our counterparts from China to investigate the case further, including how much losses have been suffered by the victims," Comm Amar said.

Initial investigations revealed that the syndicate raked in several million ringgit each month, he added.

"We don't have the exact figures, but based on the salary of more than RM2,500 for each worker, as well as the office rental cost and flying the workers from China, their earnings could easily be a couple of million monthly.

"We're aware that such scammers were able to contact the victims, as there is a leak in personal data.

"I had a meeting with my counterparts in Hong Kong and Singapore, and they are also facing similar problems with regards to cybercrime," he said.

Hong Kong has 10 times more "Nigerian" scam cases than Malaysia. Recently, a woman lost some RM95mil in such a scam there, Comm Amar added.

He also called on Malaysian telecommunication companies to upgrade their systems so that they could assist the police in tracking down Internet Protocol (IP) addresses used by the scammers.

"We are more interested in the IP address, and I hope the government can play its part in getting the telcos to upgrade their system," he said.

Comm Amar reminded the public not to easily fall for such scams.

Zurich Acquires PT Adira Insurance

Zurich Insurance Group has acquired 80% of Indonesia’s Adira Insurance from Bank Danamon and a minority shareholder in a transaction worth approximately $414m (£314m, €352m).

The transaction, which equates locally to IDR6.15trn, puts Zurich in the top 10 property and casualty insurers in the country. Zurich will hold an 80% stake in Adira while Bank Danamon will retain 20%.

The acquisition includes two separate long-term cooperation agreements with Bank Danamon, Indonesia’s fifth largest bank, and Adira Finance, the second largest provider of automotive finance including for motor-cycles.

Zurich says Adira Finance also has a significant share of takaful (pooled Islamic) insurance.

Jack Howell, Zurich’s chief executive for Asia Pacific, says: “Zurich has earmarked Asia Pacific to be a major engine of growth for the group, and Indonesia is a key market for us.

“This transaction demonstrates our commitment to Indonesia and is an excellent opportunity to expand our regional business, enabling more customers to fulfil their insurance needs.

“We are excited to join forces with Bank Danamon and Adira Finance. Both are well-established brands and have an extensive distribution network. Together with Zurich’s international expertise, best-in-class underwriting and risk management capabilities, we are confident in the long-term success of the business.”

Adira Insurance was established in 1996 and generated gross written premiums of $158m in 2017. The deal, which is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, should complete within the next six months.