00:00The Court of Appeal was told today that government retirees are not entitled to pension adjustments under the 2016 Public Service Department Circular, as it does not amount to a salary revision.
00:13Senior Federal Counsel Ahmad Hanir Hanbali argued that the circular merely enhances the civil service scheme and does not trigger pension changes for retirees.
00:23The government and the JPA's Director General are appealing a High Court ruling that sided with 56 pensioners led by Aminah Ahmad, who sought adjustments based on the pre-2013 Pensions Adjustment Act.
00:37Hanir said the High Court misinterpreted the circular and claimed the matter had already been litigated in a 2017 suit, making the current case barred under res judicata.
00:48Lawyer Abdul Shukur Ahmad representing the pensioners countered that the circular's substance did affect pensioners and had been properly raised in the current judicial review.
00:59He stressed that the earlier case only challenged the constitutionality of the 2013 amendments, which were later declared void for violating Article 147 of the federal constitution.
01:11Justice Amarjit Singh had earlier issued a mandamus order in January compelling the government to revise pensions within three months, based on the old salary-linked formula in the Pensions Adjustment Act 1980.
01:25The Court of Appeal has fixed September 17 for case management with pensioners seeking reinstatement of adjustments tied to civil servant salaries, rather than a flat 2% annual increment introduced in 2013.
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