Birth and MyKad registrations online

Identities confirmed: Muhyiddin (background, fourth from left) standing with Ruslin to his right and MyKad recipients at NRD headquarters in Putrajaya. Also present were Home Ministry secretary-general Tan Sri Alwi Ibrahim (fourth from right) and IGP Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Bador. — Bernama

PUTRAJAYA: Starting next year, Malaysians can register births or apply for a 12-year-old’s first MyKad online, says National Registration Department (NRD) director-general Datuk Ruslin Jusoh.

He added that applicants will only need to come to NRD’s offices to present original documents for verification purposes before collecting the new documents they applied for.

“In line with the advancement of digital technology, it is high time that NRD moves forward and improve on the delivery system at its counters.

“Beginning next year, NRD will begin implementing online applications for several official matters, such as birth registration, birth certificate extraction, first MyKad for 12-year-olds, identification card extraction by individuals or external agencies, and marriage applications for non-Muslims, ” he said in his speech at the National Registration Day celebration here yesterday.

Ruslin said the new features will complement other online facilities the NRD introduced earlier, including registration of deaths and MyKad replacements.

“NRD hopes these enhancements will help us provide the best service to our customers and reduce the waiting time at our offices, ” he added.

Ruslin also said that the department will improve its standard operating procedures to ensure integrity in the production of birth certificates and identification cards.

“We want to ensure no room for abuse of power or confidential leaks in producing these self-identification documents.”

The event was launched by Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin at the NRD headquarters here.

Muhyiddin urged Malaysians to update their MyKad information such as changes in address in view of automatic voter registration, which is expected to come into force in 2021.

Based on NRD’s statistics, 22,956,443 MyKad holders have not updated their information while another 1,429,196 do not own one.

“We have started working with the Election Commission to prepare for automatic voter registration which will be enforced in 2021.

“I urge those who have not updated their details to do so soon.

“Those who do not own a MyKad... honestly, I do not know how they can survive without having one. We have hundreds of NRD branches in the country, and if they live far from one, we can go to them, ” he said.

Muhyiddin also launched “JPN Mobile Express”, which is part of the department’s programme to reach out to communities in remote areas using buses equipped with MyKad printing facilities.

Applicants will be able to get their new MyKad in less than an hour at the same location where the JPN Mobile Express bus is parked.

On a separate matter, Muhyiddin said Malaysia cannot afford to do away with the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act (Sosma) in light of the global threat of terrorism.

He added that the government does not intend to abolish the Act but was working to amend certain provisions that are deemed “draconian”.- Star