By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, April 18: Kota Sentosa assemblyman Wilfred Yap assisted an elderly couple to withdraw their pension money for medical expenses after a local bank allegedly refused to renew their debit card for withdrawal.
In a statement today, Yap said the husband, 87, approached his service centre recently and said the bank refused to renew the debit card that has expired in November 2023, despite numerous appeals.
According to Yap, the husband revealed that his wife, who is a pensioner, has late stage dementia and is physically bedridden, and although the government pension is no longer paid into his wife’s bank account at this local bank, there is still a balance of two months’ pension which his wife urgently needs to utilise for medical expenses.
“At the request of the husband of this woman pensioner, I have appealed to this local bank to close her account and the monies due to her be paid by way of a Banker’s Cheque issued under her name with her husband standing as guarantor for the sum issued under the cheque.
“Following the appeal, the staff of this local Bank will visit the woman pensioner at her home to confirm the latest situation and will make a report to their head office for approval,” he added.
Yap said he also hoped that banks will adopt compassionate banking as part of their corporate social responsibility.
“The concept is basically about the banking system acknowledging difficulties and showing empathy to problems faced by their customers in trying times,” he said. — DayakDaily
