By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Jan 22: The Home Ministry (KDN) has finalised decisions on 12,509 applications for personal identification documents submitted by residents in the interior of Sarawak, marking significant progress in addressing documentation gaps in remote communities.
According to MalayMail, citing Bernama, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the approvals were made through the Special Task Force (PPK) from a total of 13,224 applications collected since July 2023, with 715 applications still being processed.
He noted that despite Malaysia’s development status, some residents—particularly in remote areas—still lack birth certificates or MyKad, limiting access to education and healthcare.
“Officers do not wait at the office. They go to the longhouses and seek out people without documents. If this happens, life becomes difficult. It is hard to attend school, and if someone falls ill, hospital expenses are high,” he said during a question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday (Jan 21).
Saifuddin was responding to a question from Datuk Ali Biju (PN-Saratok) on the status of document issuance for stateless individuals in Sarawak’s interior and whether procedures had been simplified due to the state’s challenging geography.
He explained that the task force operates under the Premier’s Department, with support from the Home Ministry via the National Registration Department (JPN) through the Menyemai Kasih Rakyat (Mekar) initiative.
Under existing regulations, births must be registered within 40 days in Sarawak and Sabah, and within 60 days in Peninsular Malaysia. However, he acknowledged that geography has hindered compliance in many interior areas.
“As such, applications handled by the special task force are no longer constrained by usual bureaucratic procedures,” he said, adding that officers now go directly to communities instead of requiring families to travel to offices.
Since the task force was set up, Saifuddin said nine special engagement programmes have been conducted, contributing to 1,117 initiatives related to personal identification documentation. Of these, 236 programmes were carried out in 2023, 204 in 2024, 404 in 2025, and seven programmes have already been completed in the second and third weeks of January this year.
He added that apart from geographical barriers, low awareness among communities about registering births also contributes to the lack of documentation.
Saifuddin said the ministry, through JPN, is also actively supporting documentation efforts for Orang Asli communities in Peninsular Malaysia, citing an initiative in Kuala Tahan, Pahang, where more than 200 documentation issues were resolved over several days.
Meanwhile, Deputy Speaker Datuk Dr Ramli Mohd Nor suggested that KDN, JPN and the Department of Orang Asli Development (JAKOA) focus attention on the Negrito tribe living along the Malaysia–Thailand border areas. — DayakDaily
