Home Minister Bashed for Using Elderly People for “Embarrassing PR Stunt” During Citizenship BM Test

Malaysian citizenship has always been a tumultuous issue, with many who have lived in this country for all their lives still not gaining citizenship being born here and applying multiple times while foreign footballers get naturalised.

But, if knowing Bahasa Malaysia (BM) is an important aspect of gaining citizenship, who do you think deserves it more? Those who have been here their whole lives or foreign football players?

Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail is getting called out by Malaysians after showcasing himself quizzing and testing elderly people on their BM at the National Registration Department in Perak, as the elderly people hope to gain Malaysian citizenship.

He wrote, “A summary of my work visit in regards to the Malay Language Knowledge Test for citizenship status application under Article 19(1) of the Federal Constitution at KDN Complex Ipoh, Perak.”

In his video, he explained that his presence was to monitor the process of the BM interviews for Malaysian citizenship.

“The candidates consist of those who were born before (Malaysia’s) independence, but because their documents are not complete and such, their request (for citizenship) are processed under Article 19, naturalisation,” he said.

He also shared his belief that the Malay language syllabus used as the knowledge test is sufficient and effective.

“Because it has components of introducing themselves, their family’s background and there is also a syllabus related to their basic knowledge of common foods eaten by Malaysians or the main ethnic festivals in our country.”

“So, the syllabus is in the form of text, questions and are also in the form of photos, pictures. So that help these candidates who are 80-years-old, some are 90-years-old and when they attend, the syllabus becomes their guide,” he added.

While many praised the process, others pointed out that it’s unfair for many of these elderly people to have waited years for citizenship only to be used as a cringey PR stunt.

“Football players can easily get citizenship without having to speak BM. The laws of Malaysia are horrible.”

Considering the fact that the Home Minister had absolutely no problem with showcasing how these senior citizens were being tested, we urge him to also showcase how foreign football players are tested before they get naturalised.

You can check out his video here: 

Rangkuman lawatan kerja saya ke Ujian Pengetahuan Bahasa Melayu bagi permohonan taraf kewarganegaraan dibawah Perkara 19(1) Perlembagaan Persekutuan di Kompleks KDN Ipoh, Perak. #MalaysiaMADANI pic.twitter.com/o0pWCHbC7K

— Saifuddin Nasution Ismail (@saifnasution) March 5, 2024

What do you think about this? Do feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section.

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