No problem re-issuing ICs: NRD

No problem re-issuing ICs: NRD Published on: Saturday, March 21, 2015 Daily Express Kota Kinabalu: The National Registration Department (NRD) in Sabah has all the resources needed, including manpower, should the Government decide to recall and reissue all ICs in the State. "Nothing has been decided but if it comes to that, we will be ready. It is possible and can be done," said its Director Ismail Ahmad (pic), Friday. He added that the department has all the information needed to execute the exercise and all 29 branches statewide are adequate enough to carry out the verification of ICs. "Of course it will mean extra work for us but I believe the Government will know what to do. They will have the mechanism in place on how that can be done. We in the NRD in Sabah, we have enough people. "For now, we just have to wait and see what the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on Illegal Immigrants in Sabah committee decides to do," he said. Asked about the possibility of a Sabah IC as suggested by some quarters, Ismail felt all Malaysians should have one type of IC only which is the Malaysian IC. "Anyway, we only receive orders. It is better to adopt a wait and see position right now. Whatever the suggestion, we will implement." Meanwhile, Ismail clarified that only foreigners who have stayed in Sabah for more than five years are eligible for Permanent Resident (PR) status and only PR holders who have stayed here continuously for 12 years would be considered for citizenship. He also stressed that the department no longer accepts Statutory Declaration letters and only refer to birth certificates. However, there are exceptions for some people who wish to get the MyKad. "If the applications are accompanied by letters from the Home Ministry, then NRD is obliged to issue MyKad to these applicants. That is our procedure," he said. Commenting on foreigners who hardly speak Malay and still retain their culture from their country of origin but are in possession of genuine ICs, Ismail said it is difficult to accuse these people of obtaining their IC through dubious means. "How can we say they have not stayed here for more than 12 years as required because sometimes, even our natives can't speak proper Malay. "I am aware that people are saying these people have just arrived here a few months and suddenly they have ICs. But if you have proof of these accusations, I welcome you to come forward and report to the police and NRD," he said. Meanwhile, Ismail also denied that Keningau has the most number of foreigners possessing fake MyKads or ICs. "In fact, all districts have the problem but the department could not give the exact number as these MyKads were produced by syndicates. "I admit, years ago, many MyKads were issued to foreigners by NRD resulting in 22 officers being detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) and all the MyKads have been cancelled. "However, what is happening today is different because these MyKads are fake. They look similar but they are not the same. I don't know what type of machine was used to produce these, where and how they did it," he said. Last month, he said, a foreigner was arrested after attempting to use a fake MyKad to apply for a passport but was caught because the Immigration's system is linked to NRD and it was found that the chip in the MyKad was empty. Investigation revealed that the culprit paid RM8,000 for the fake MyKad but he could not pinpoint the real mastermind behind the syndicate because of too many middlemen. He said Ismail said NRD is cooperating with the police in tracking down the type of machine used to produce the fake MyKad. "But no matter how sophisticated the machine is, it still cannot fully imitate the end product produced by NRD because we have security features in the chip. The fakes' chips are empty and when we check with our system, they cannot produce the data," he said. Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan, who is Keningau MP, had expressed dismay over a report that Keningau had the highest number of foreigners with fake ICs. Ismail said he had already spoken to Pairin and showed him the fake ICs. "He was surprised of course. The fakes look very similar, with the chips in place. They not only imitate the blue MyKad, even red MyKad is not spared. For genuine ICs, if you run it through UV light, you will see all the security features. These fakes are empty. "Even through naked eyes, you can tell they are fakes. The colour is a bit off, the fonts look different and the printing is unusual," he said. Ismail added that this year alone, the department had detected six people in possession of the fake ICs. All six were arrested in Kota Kinabalu. He said the problem is not unique to Sabah because there have been many instances where fake ICs were detected in the peninsula also although the carriers would usually have Sabah as their addresses. Reminding the public about the bank security guard in KL who robbed the bank he was supposed to protect and killed a woman bank officer, Ismail advised potential employers to verify all ICs with the department if they are suspicious about the authenticity of the ICs of jobseekers. "We do not know these people's agenda. They could even be spies for their people back in their countries of origin. We are afraid of this. "Not only that, the government will lose out on levies because these people will skip the work permits and work illegally. Imagine the amount of losses we are are incurring. "Before you employ, be cautious. We Sabahans can know instinctively through their accent. If their ICs look suspicious, inform the department immediately." A crackdown aimed at holders of the fake ICs, he said would be fruitless because these people are also victims although the authority will continue to round them up in integrated operations. Ismail said the authority is working hard to gather intelligence to identify the real masterminds behind the syndicate and bring them to justice. It could not be ascertained however whether the syndicates are based in the State or in other states or even outside the country.