Why make the elderly go all the way to NRD Putrajaya?

My elderly relative is having problems whenever she has to do banking transactions, especially withdrawing money as the MyKad thumb reader is unable to read both her thumb prints due to her worn-out thumb prints which are common among those at an advanced age when the elasticity of skin decreases with age.

The bank rightfully instructed my relative to proceed to any National Registration Department (NRD) to obtain an acknowledgement letter of identity for a fee of RM5 to indicate that the holder of the MyKad is the actual person with the worn-out thumps prints.

We proceeded to the NRD branch in Puchong since it is the nearest to my relative's place of residence but was directed that all cases of worn-out thumb prints and unreadable chips where the MyKad reader cannot read any prints must be handled by the NRD Putrajaya.

All branches other than the central NRD Putrajaya are unable to issue the acknowledgement letter.

It is such a challenge for my elderly relative to go NRD Putrajaya for such a simple verification. After all, the photo printed on the MyKad is identical to the actual person and she has other documents such as her birth certificate to prove her identity.

Without an NRD acknowledgement letter, any banking transaction performed by my elderly relative is a tedious affair, including opening fixed deposit accounts and applying for an automatic teller card.

We hope that all NRD branches are able to provide an acknowledgement letter instead of having it issued at only NRD Putrajaya. Such a decentralisation would mean that elderly people have better access to get the letter of identity.- Mkini