By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Nov 20: Telekom Malaysia (TM) has acknowledged that some Malaysians faced difficulties reaching the 999 emergency line and experienced slower response times during the early phase of the NG MERS 999 migration.
In a statement, TM said it understands the concerns this has caused for individuals and families in urgent situations and assured that every incident is being treated as a top priority.
The 17-year-old MERS999 platform was upgraded to NG MERS 999 after reaching its technical limits, which hindered its ability to meet Malaysia’s evolving emergency requirements. The new system was introduced to enhance accessibility, strengthen multi-agency coordination, and align Malaysia with modern international emergency standards.
Since the migration, TM reported a surge in call volume.
“Upon this migration, we saw a surge in call volume immediately. While the previous system averaged around 50,000 calls per day, the new NG MERS 999 received close to 70,000 calls per day.
“About 5 per cent of these calls were genuine emergencies, while the remainder were silent or prank calls. Despite the spike, the number of actual emergency incidents remained steady at an average of 3,500 reports dispatched per day,” the statement said.
The sudden increase affected system performance, prompting TM to take immediate measures such as increasing server capacity, optimising server configurations, and deploying additional call centre resources to manage high-volume calls.
TM emphasised that the 999 voice service remains the primary channel for emergency assistance, while the SaveME999 mobile application acts as a complementary option.
“Users can refer to published FAQ in https://999.gov.my website for installation and registration guide,” it said.
The company also reaffirmed its commitment to collaborating with all five emergency agencies, including the Health Ministry, police, Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba), Civil Defence Force (APM), and Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) to ensure seamless end-to-end emergency services.
TM appealed to the public to use the 999 service responsibly, warning that unnecessary or prank calls could prevent genuine emergencies from receiving timely assistance.
“TM remains fully committed to safeguarding Malaysia’s national emergency lifeline. Our teams are working around the clock to ensure that every Malaysian can access help quickly and reliably, whether through the 999 voice service or the digital channel,” the statement concluded. — DayakDaily
