THE Federal Government has set a one-year time frame to resolve citizenship applications for stateless babies and children in Sarawak and other states.
Announcing this today, Sarawak Minister for Women, Community Wellbeing and Early Childhood Development Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah said she was informed of this by Putrajaya.
"The Home Ministry informed us of this one-year time- frame that it has set to process and resolve citizenship applications for stateless babies and children.
"We thank the Madani Government for this latest decision.
"This new standard operating procedure of one year to resolve these stateless cases of the little ones will be most helpful to us in Sarawak.
"There are many such cases that take five years and beyond to be looked into," she said in Kuching.
On Sept 5, Fatimah had proposed to Putrajaya to set a two-year deadline to solve the citizenship woes of stateless Sarawakian babies and children.
This deadline is necessary to enable them to receive medical and health treatment and also formal education in kindergartens and then primary schools, she said. - December 21, 2024
