Mohamad said that politicians had in the past abused such titles to access military areas. — Picture by Shafwan Zaidon

KUALA LUMPUR, July 31 ― Putrajaya will no longer allow military awards and medals to be given on honorary basis to politicians, Defence Minister Mohamad Sabu said today.

“We are stopping the practice of giving medals to politicians. We will only give them to those who are formally trained to be in the army,” Mohamad, also known as Mat Sabu, said.

He said that such practices had been open to abuse in the past.

“We don’t want politicians dominating the armed forces anymore,” he added.

He said that politicians had in the past abused such titles to access military areas.

“We do not want to repeat the mistakes done by the previous administration,” he said.

In June, Mohamad had said he instructed the Armed Forces to review the current trend of granting honorary military titles such as “Captain” or “Major” to the public.

The Parti Amanah Negara president said this was needed to maintain the Forces’ image, and the decision is supported by many of its veterans.