KUCHING: About 80 per cent of the citizenship applications under Article 15A of the Federal Constitution in Sarawak have been resolved and approved within seven months.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said his ministry received 946 applications from Sarawak early this year and most of the applicants have begun receiving the citizenship approval letters.
“I remember (Minister of Women, Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development) Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah who led the taskforce in dealing with the stateless children issues in Sarawak coming to my office with 946 applications on Jan 17, wanting me to speed up the process of approving and granting the citizenship to these children.
“I agreed as it is something close to my heart. I am glad that we managed to process all the applications within seven months,” he said at the handing over of citizenship approval letters at a ceremony for 62 Sarawakians at Wisma Bapa here today.
Saifuddin said some applications were rejected due to several reasons, including verification of some documents, requiring applicants to submit additional documents or information to support their application.
“As much as we wanted to simplify and speed up the process, we must also ensure the process and approval comply with the laws and regulations as well.
“Furthermore, there were also cases in Peninsular Malaysia, where some hospitals issued fake birth certificates,” he said.
Apart from the special taskforce led by Fatimah, Saifuddin said, there were also applications submitted by individuals or other non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Hence, he advised all relevant parties and agencies, including his ministry officers to be committed in addressing the cases.
Meanwhile, Fatimah who represented Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg at the ceremony, reminded couples and parents to register their marriages and the birth of their child and children promptly.
According to her, many cases of stateless cases in Sarawak were due to unregistered marriages between Malaysians and foreigners, which led to their children becoming stateless or without citizenship.
“Without citizenship status, these children will be denied access to education, healthcare and welfare services and other assistance. Thus, the problem must be dealt with immediately,” she said.
Although 946 applications from Sarawak which were submitted in January had been resolved, she said, there will be more new applications.
“We thank the Home Ministry for delivering what had been promised, but there will be more cases or new applications from time to time. So, we need to continue to work together in addressing this issue,” she said.
