Fadillah Yusof, who is the senior vice-president of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, said the decision which has angered the medical fraternity in the public sector was clearly made without proper studies done to ensure fairness.

Fadillah, who was the works minister under the previous government, said a similar “misguided decision” was seen in the proposal to buy over tolled highways despite costing billions of public funds.

“There clearly is a disconnect between the government’s self-styled financial prudence and the importance of the welfare of Malaysians,” said the Petra Jaya MP.

Anger has been brewing among government doctors and medical staff who will bear the brunt of the Public Service Department’s (JPA) decision to stop paying the critical service allowance, which was introduced in 1992.

The move could see newly-graduated doctors, nurses, pharmacists and dentists who join the public sector next year being paid 15% less than their senior counterparts.

Fadillah said despite the plunge in oil prices four years ago, the previous government had ensured that the allowance would continue.

“It appears that the government has had a taste of its own medicine, the same medicine it said was a cure to what they had trumpeted as economic and financial failures of the previous regime,” he added.

He said the decision calls into question Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng’s repeated claims that government coffers were improving despite the abolition of the goods and services tax.

“It’s time the government come clean about its financial health, or else it will be exposed again by decisions such as the move to repeal the critical services allowance,” said Fadillah.