KUCHING: Sarawak Pakatan Harapan is working closely with the Home Affairs Ministry on the issue of stateless children in the state. Both parties would seek for a more effective policy direction and standard operating procedure (SOP) for the children to apply for citizenship, said Bandar Kuching MP Kelvin Yii.
In a press statement yesterday, he said a delegation that included Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Deputy Minister Chong Chieng Jen met with Home Affairs Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to discuss the matter.
He disclosed that there were different categories of obtaining proper documentation or citizenship.
“Discussions were made on the process of registration under Article 15(a) of the Federal Constitution where the federal government may, in such special circumstances as it thinks fit, cause any person under the age of 21 to be registered as a citizen, especially in the case of adoption or children born before the registration of marriage by their parents.
“The discussion also included the application for citizenship under Article 19 for those above 21 and Article 15(2) where one of the parents is a citizen.
“Currently, there is already a task force in Sarawak itself but results have been less than encouraging and the issue continues to persist,” he said.
“That’s why we are pushing for greater urgency and a better SOP to not just make it more convenient for the public to apply if they have a legitimate reason to do so, but also to lessen the processing time of the application.”
Yii said another issue discussed was the need to make the application process more transparent so that applicants would be informed of the reason if rejected.
“This is important so that applicants will know how to proceed next and prepare better for the next application.”
He said Muhyiddin assured that the ministry was working towards addressing the issues raised.
“They will be arranging further engagements and meetings with us and all the different stakeholders, including the relevant departments to find a way to properly address this issue while also addressing the concerns some may have over the whole citizenship application process.”
“On top of that, the other issue that we discussed with the minister is the need to come down hard and tackle the issue of drugs that is getting more and more rampant not just in Sarawak but all around Malaysia.
“This problem affects not only adults but more and more young people. Even schoolchildren are now getting involved. We highlighted a few hot spots all around Sarawak and the need for the police to take a more holistic approach in tackling this
menace,” said Yii.
Recently, it was revealed that Sarawak recorded the highest number of secondary school students found positive for drugs in the country as at October 2018.
There has been a growing trend leaning towards the use of methamphetamine, which accounted for 61 percent of those who tested positive for the substance.
“A lot of these cases affect our youths, especially in the rural areas as many of these students are often influenced by their peers as well as the lack of awareness of the adverse effects of drugs.
“The minister again responded positively and affirmed again the need to come down hard on the issue of drug abuse not just in Sarawak but also nationwide.
“We will then have more follow-up meetings with the Home Affairs Ministry to monitor and see through the implementation or new policy direction of the issues that were discussed,” added Yii.
