Guan Eng: No race required on ‘golden child’ form

GEORGE TOWN - The Penang Govern¬ment has released the Penang Golden Child Programme application form with no “race” category.

“This is the first form that doesn’t require you to state your race. From the state’s point of view, it is sufficient that you are a Malaysian citizen. We are all ‘anak Malaysia’,” said Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, adding that the state felt the move was in line with the spirit of the coming Malaysia Day on Sept 16.

However, Lim added that those applying for the state’s Senior Citizen Appreciation Programme would still need to fill out a form with the race category.

“When we printed forms for the Senior Citizen Appreciation Pro¬gramme, we used the standard format. For the purpose of continuity, the future forms will be the same, but for new state-driven initiatives, there is a great likelihood there will be no ‘race’ category,” he said.

Lim also said for programmes that involved both state and federal agencies, the ‘race’ column would be retained.

Lim was speaking to reporters after attending a Hari Raya open house at the Penang Development Corporation on Persiaran Mahsuri, Bayan Baru, yesterday.

- The Star