50 Tahun Jubli Emas KWSP : 50th Golden Anniversary of EPF (1st Oct 2001)

The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) was established under the EPF Act 1951. The EPF is a statutory organization that is responsible for providing financial security in the form of savings for its members upon their retirement.

Until 1958 the Director of Post administered the Fund and subsequent to that, the Board took over its operations. The EPF received its first monthly contributions, totaling RM2.6 million from 518,948 members in August 1951. Fifty years later, its membership increased to 9.7 million with annual contributions of RM20.97 billion.

During the early years, the WPF provided coverage only for certain categories of workers. Then in 1970, the EPF expanded its role to cover almost all workers.

EPF members are allowed to withdraw their savings for retirement purposes at the age of 55 and prior that age, they are allowed to withdraw part of their savings upon reaching 50 years of age, for housing, healthcare and other purposes.

EPF is administered by Board of Directors. The Fund’s headquarters is located at the EPF Building in Kuala Lumpur. The Fund has 14 States Offices and 48 branches throughout the country.

Istana-Istana DiRaja : Royal Palaces (18th July 2011)

Book of Stamps features a compilation of the Royal Palaces in Malaysia. As there are many royal palaces in Malaysia, this stamp issuance features the official palace of the Sultan of each state in Malaysia. Each palace featured in a stamp valued at RM1 has different and unique architecture features and design.

Istana Negara, Kuala Lumpur
Istana Negara is the official residence of His Majesty, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia and Her Majesty Seri Paduka Baginda Raja Permaisuri Agong. It was built on a 28 acre site and located at Jalan Istana opposite the Jalan Syed Putra, Kuala Lumpur. Besides held for the Installation Ceremony of His Majesty Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong, it also serves as a Royal banquet hall, installation ceremony, investiture ceremonies and the taking of oaths by the government ministers and state governors.

Istana Besar Seri Menanti, Negeri Sembilan Darul Khusus
The Seri Menanti Palace situated in Negeri Sembilan is the official residence of the DYMM Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan. This new palace was completely constructed in 1931 to replace the previous Seri Menanti Palace.

Istana Shah Alam, Selangor Darul Ehsan
The Shah Alam Palace is situated in Klang, Selangor. Its construction was completed in 1960 on the site of the Mahkota Palace which was demolished in 1958. All official functions and ceremonial of Selangor royalty such as the proclamation, installation and coronation are held in this palace.

Istana Arau, Perlis Indera Kayangan
Istana Arau was beautifully nestled as an emblem for Perlis monarchy, the only state in Malaysia that used ‘Raja’ for the state ruler. This palace is located in Arau, the Royal Town in Perlis. It was built around year 1905 to 1945 during the reign of Almarhum Tuanku Raja Syed Alwi Jamalullail, the former King of Perlis the Fourth who reside before in ‘Rumah Kuning’ near the palace. This palace is a venue for official functions such as investiture ceremonies, served as a state banquet and also for acceptance of the chief departments, Members of Parliament, foreign ambassadors and honored guests.

Istana Maziah, Terengganu Darul Iman
Istana Maziah is the official palace of the Sultan of Terengganu. It is located at the foot of Bukit Puteri in Kuala Terengganu. It was constructed during the reign of Sultan Zainal Abidin III and was built to replace Istana Hijau which was destroyed in a fire. The Palace is the official venue for important functions such as coronation ceremony and royal birthdays, weddings, conferment of titles and receptions for local and foreign dignitaries.

Istana Anak Bukit, Kedah Darul Aman
Istana Anak Bukit is the largest palace in the northern peninsular Malaysia. It is located in Anak Bukit, the royal town of Kedah Darul Aman. It is the royal palace and an official residence to the Sultan of Kedah Darul Aman, Kebawah D.Y.M.M. Tuanku Sultan Haji Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah. In conjunction with the Golden Jubilee Celebrations for the 50th years of the reign of the Sultan Kedah Darul Aman, a construction of new building was completed in October 2007 which could accommodate 1,400 people at any one time.

Istana Balai Besar, Kelantan Darul Naim
Built by Sultan Muhammad II in 1840, Istana Balai Besar was originally built to replace his palace at Saba Island which was destroyed by erosion and flood. However, it is now used as an official office for The Sultan of Kelantan as well as a venue for official state functions. Istana Balai besar is the oldest palace in Kelantan and also one of the oldest Malay palaces in Malaysia.

Istana Abu Bakar, Pahang Darul Makmur
Istana Abu Bakar, an official palace for Sultan Pahang is situated in Royal Town of Pekan, Pahang and nearby the sites of Istana Seri Terentang. The construction starts in 1965 and completed its construction in 1974. Design of the palace was done by a Chinese architect and it’s more to modern design. This palace is now the residence of Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah.

Istana Besar, Johor Darul Takzim
Istana Besar constructed in 1866 became the seat of government with the establishment of a state council and offices. It is the birthplace of UMNO in 1946. It houses the Royal Abu Bakar Museum showcasing a wide collection of royal heirloom and artifacts of the Johor Empire from the 16th century.

Istana Iskandariah, Perak Darul Ridzuan
The Iskandariah Palace is situated at Bukit Chandan, Perak on the former site of National Palace. This palace is the official residence of the Rulers of Perak since its completion in 1933. The architecture of this palace is similar to the Islamic Indian ‘saracenic’ blended together with the West Asian architecture such as the pointed arch, design on the minaret and onion shaped domes.

Pejabat Pos Lama : Old Post Offices (9th Oct 2010)

The Post Office was officially established in England in 1660. Similar Post Offices were established across the British Empire and other countries including Malaysia. In the early 1800s, the postal services started in the Straits Settlements (Penang, Malacca and Singapore) and gradually covered the whole of Malaysia by early 20th century.

A post office is the facility for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling transmission and delivery of mail. All post is transferred from the post office of origination to distribution points called sorting stations, and from there the post was then sent on for delivery to the receiver of post. The Post Master heads each post office.

However, what started as a medium for the transmission of letters and business documents, the postal service has evolved into a one stop services provider. It began to venture into parcel delivery, registrations, insurance service, transaction of money (postal order and money order) and banking services.

From Jabatan Perkhidmatan Pos, Jabatan Pos, in early 1992, Pos Malaysia Berhad began the biggest changes in the history with the grant of business freedom. With freedom comes a greater challenge. Faced with growing competitions, Pos Malaysia Berhad begins its journey of streamlining its operations by segregation of the business into three main Strategic Business Units called PosMel, PosLaju, and PosNiaga.

Today, there are over 703 post offices in Malaysia. This issue highlights some of the existing post office buildings in Malaysia; that is two post offices from each state are presented by stamps valued at 60sen each. Most of the post offices buildings are historical buildings; some were built before Pre-World War II period. The post offices nationwide have different characteristics and architectural styles that are each interesting and unique.