Bankruptcy Discharge Provides New Lease On Life For Bankrupt Individuals

By Previnna Thuraisingam & Ahmad Aidil Syukri Hamzah

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 1 (Bernama) --The Second Chance Policy initiative implemented by the government under the “Rukun Ihsan” principle provides a new lease on life for the bankrupts.

Selangor Insolvency director Pavani Kasi said bankrupt individuals who benefitted from the initiative thanked the government for the move and were now relieved that the “restrictions” imposed on them had been lifted.

"We have granted relief to many bankrupt individuals under the Second Chance Policy. Many are very grateful and happy to be released. Their lives are greatly improved because they had been living under bankruptcy with many restrictions," she told Bernama.

She said bankrupt individuals are divided into three age groups, namely 25 to 44 years, 45 to 54 years and 55 years and above, where many of those in the  25 to 44 age category were declared bankrupt due to personal loans and excessive use of their credit cards.

"For those aged 45 and above, it is possible due to loans to start a business,” she said and advised the public not to be influenced by the lavish lifestyle displayed on social media and to spend within their means.

Pavani also emphasised the importance of financial management among young people to reduce the number of individuals in the group from becoming bankrupt.

The Dean of the Faculty of Human Ecology at Universiti Putra Malaysia Prof Dr Mohamad Fazli Sabri concurred with Pavani.

The Second Chance initiative by the government has given young bankrupt individuals the opportunity to start a new life, he said, adding that almost 50 per cent of the total number of bankrupt individuals in the country are those under the age of 44.

He expressed the need for an awareness programme and monitoring to ensure the “Second Chance” given to bankrupt individuals is not wasted.

“We do not want to see them declared bankrupt again,” he said.

Mohamad Fazli, also a consumer finance specialist, suggested that the young bankrupt individuals who are granted the release be given education on managing their finances to avoid going back to their old ways.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, speaking at the Malaysian Insolvency Department's 100th anniversary recently,  said his government had discharged 142,510 bankruptcy cases through the Second Chance Policy, exceeding the initial target of 130,000 cases.

The second chance policy was implemented under the amendments to the Insolvency Act 1967 and announced by the Prime Minister last October.

-- BERNAMA