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Ministry Questions Immigration Congestion Allegation

Mar 07, 2024

The Home Minister has questioned the accuracy of an allegation by Human Rights Watch…that there are some 1,400 kids held at immigration detention depots across the country.

Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail insists he is fully aware of the situation at these depots…and urged the group to provide more details to back up their claims.

He also denied that there is overcrowding at immigration detention centers.

He explained that the only time these centers were congested was during the Covid pandemic.

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More than 200 notices have been issued, in a recent nationwide anti-smoking operation.

The Health Ministry says most of the offenders were caught for lighting up at restaurants, shopping malls and airports.

It adds that the five states with the most offenders for smoking at eateries were Selangor, Johor, Penang, Sarawak and Pahang.

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Separately, the ministry says the implementation of the HPV vaccination program for schoolgirls will be sped up this year, to make up for the delays during the Covid pandemic and the unavailability of vaccines.

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A new and improved format for MP’s and government officials to declare their assets will be tabled to the Cabinet soon for further consideration.

The Deputy Law and Institutional Reform Minister M. Kulasegaran says the new format will be more precise and transparent.

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The Bank Negara governor says Malaysia’s economy is projected to grow by four to five percent this year, thanks to strong domestic demand and an improvement in the external sector.

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Meanwhile, the Finance Ministry says the government expects to collect over 3.4 billion ringgit in additional revenue…thanks to the new service tax.