MyKad - Government Makes A Crucial Concession.

Malaysians who fear losing their MyKad can choose to carry a copy of the identification document with them, said Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Datuk Tan Chai Ho. However, they would have to produce the original MyKad if asked to do so.

The question of Malaysians not carrying their MyKad with them, as required by law, became an issue after the National Registration Department (NRD) warned that they could be fined between RM3,000 and RM20,000. Tan said checks by NRD officers would continue but the ministry would study proposals to reduce the fine. He said the checks were not something new and were aimed at detecting forgery and to root out illegal immigrants."

A total of 2.2 million MyKads were reported lost in the past three years. This works out to more than 1,000 MyKads lost every day. "He said many of the lost MyKads were believed to have ended up in the hands of forgers who altered printed information on the cards before selling them to foreigners. However, he said, the information contained in the chip embedded in the cards could not be tampered with.

Now that the government has made a crucial concession, there should be no excuse for not carrying a copy of the MyKad. If despite this, stubborn people still refuse to carry a copy, I don't think there'll be a lot of sympathy for them if they are fined or face imprisonment. This is a good time for the opposition and all the other would-be good samaritans who objected to the unfair fines and jail terms to advice as many members of the public as they can to carry copies of the card. And they should do it with the same zeal with which they protested.