MARUDI: Special Mobile Unit (UKB) of the National Registration Department (NRD) Miri yesterday received 14 applications for birth certificate and MyKad from SMK Marudi students. The UKB head of NRD Miri, Affrizan Bujang said, only nine of the applications were processed as the other five were lready being processed by NRD in Miri. “Today we received 14 applications. After being reviewed, five of then had already been processed and the rest need further steps and documentation based on their cases’ requirements,” he said when met by New Sarawak Tribune during their touch-point outreach programme in SMK Marudi here, yesterday.
The students involved were from different ethnic groups such as Penan, Berawan, Iban and Kelabit, said Affrizan. He disclosed, some problems had been identified as the causes of identification problem among the students. “Among the problems identified are documentation problems such as the absence of parents’ marriage certificates. “There are cases requiring amendments in which the citizenship status is not stated in the birth certificate due to the absence of a marriage certificate,” he said and adding that such problems are causing these students difficulties and department needs time for the process.
According to Affrizan, the UKB team is scheduled to conduct the same outreach programme on 11 October, in Piasau (Miri) and on 21 to 22 October in Bario. In the evening, the UKB teams will conduct the same outreach programme at SMK Telang Usan. A total of ten NRD personnel are involved in the event. Meanwhile, SMK Marudi Senior Asistant (Student Affairs) Joannes Sami thanked the department for the effort in assisting those students who are yet to get their birth certificates and MyKads. “On behalf of school principal, I would like to extend my thanks to NRD for assisting our students to get their identification documents,” he said. Meanwhi le New Sarawak Tribune was able to share the feelings of the children and the students of SMK Marudi and SMK Telang Usan who were yet to have their own valid identification documents during the outreach programmes held in both schools yesterday.
Mitcell Anak Kaya, a Form Three Iban girl of SMK Marudi said having both identification documents such as birth certificate and MyKad is her dream. “I felt sadness, anger and embarrassment for not having valid identification documents,” she said. Mitcell aspires to become a nurse someday and has great potential but does not have any identification document. “I do not have any identification document yet. I used to submit it before but failed due to the documentation problem. “So I hope my application this time will be successful to serve the people and become a useful citizen,” she said.
Meanwhile , A l i v e n n u s Anzel iana, a boy of mixed Indonesian-Penan parentage from the Kuala Tutoh also kept the same desire to own identification documents. “I feel embarrassed for not having this identification document as I was born and raised here. My current birth certificate does not indicate any citizenship due to the absence of my parents’ wedding certificate,” he said. He is very hopeful that his identity card application would run smoothly.
