PUTRAJAYA: Of the 285,568 cases of lost MyKad reported last year, 50 per cent or 142,535 of them involved youth aged between 15 and 30, said Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh.
She said this figure is extremely worrying because MyKad is an important document that serves as access to various official matters.
She said that one of the main factors cited for the loss of MyKad is negligence, which accounted for 136,000 cases, and expressed concern over the risk of identity theft and fraud as well as difficulty in settling official matters, particularly those involving the government.
“So, when these youths are negligent, this will become a risk, namely having to face the prospect of being fined for a replacement MyKad, the time taken to get the replacement as well as the emotional stress,” she told a media conference after chairing the Strategic Collaboration Coordination Meeting between the Youth and Sports Ministry (KBS) and the National Registration Department (NRD) here today.
Also present was NRD director-general Badrul Hisham Alias.
Hannah added that Selangor had the highest number of cases of MyKad loss involving youth, with 23,000 cases, followed by Kuala Lumpur (20,000 cases) and Johor (17,000 cases).
“We don’t know why these three states (recorded the highest number of cases)... it could be due to them having big urban areas.
“There are lots of commercial activities in urban areas, so the MyKad is frequently handed over, such as at security posts at housing areas and commercial buildings... so it is very likely that this is closely related,” she said.
She said the meeting also studied in detail various intervention measures to be implemented through strategic collaboration between the KBS and NRD, including carrying out a digital advocacy campaign through the dissemination of graphic materials like posters and video clips on social media and official portals.
She added that the intervention measures involved delivering information regarding NRD services to youths, particularly through programmes organised by the KBS as well as departments and agencies under it.
“We will also provide counters or booths related to NRD services when organising major ministry programmes, such as the National Youth Day, National Sports Day and so on,” she said.
Hannah said the KBS and NRD also agreed to forge a collaboration to implement the ‘Menyemai Kasih Rakyat’ (MEKAR) programme to assist individuals who require NRD services, besides expanding the programme to include former national athletes.
