Must stateless children play football to get citizenship, asks DAP MP

 

Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh wants a dedicated ministry to look into the plight of children in the country.

PETALING JAYA: Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh has questioned whether stateless children have to be professional footballers to obtain Malaysian citizenship.

This comes amid reports that British-born footballer Lee Tuck, who plays for Sri Pahang FC, is now a naturalised Malaysian citizen, joining the likes of other naturalised players, Mohamadou Sumareh, Liridon Krasniqi and Guilherme de Paula.

“Must we get our stateless children to play football before the authorities pay heed to their plight?” asked Yeoh in a Facebook post.

“This is why I have earlier advocated for a ministry for children because we can afford billions for men’s interests but peanuts for the protection of children.”

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Last year, Yeoh proposed that Putrajaya set up a children’s ministry to look after the needs of children in the country.

In March, Batu Kawan MP Kasthuri Patto raised the issue of citizenship for foreign-born footballers in the Dewan Rakyat.

Then, she noted that footballers could get their citizenship while playing here for five years whereas Malaysian-born stateless persons are only given their MyKad when they are senior citizens.

She also said with nearly 2,000 stateless children as of September 2019, the government should get its priorities right by giving citizenships to local people who deserved them first. - FMT