KUALA LUMPUR – The National Service Training Programme (PLKN), which was abolished in 2018 under the Pakatan Harapan administration, may be reintroduced, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob told the Dewan Rakyat today.
He said this is taking into account the positive impact the programme had in terms of building patriotism among youth.
“The Defence Ministry will suggest to the cabinet for PLKN to be reintroduced.
“We will prepare a memorandum soon on its reintroduction, which will then be tabled to the cabinet,” he said during his Budget 2021 winding-up speech.
He was replying to a question from Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan (BN-Pontian) during a previous Budget debate, on whether the government intends to bring back PLKN.
The programme, together with the National Civics Bureau, was abolished in August 2018, three months after PH came into power. The discontinuation was met with disapproval from various quarters, including lawmakers.
Then youth and sports minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman had said the decision to do away with PLKN was made after the cabinet found that it had been misused to indoctrinate certain beliefs in youth.
Ismail Sabri added that the government will build another 19 border control posts in Sabah and Sarawak over the next three years, more than doubling the current number.
This is to tighten security, curb the entry of undocumented migrants and combat cross-border crimes, he said.
“At present, we have 16 border posts in East Malaysia, with nine in Sarawak and seven in Sabah. We will build 19 more in three phases.
“The first phase will be done in 2021, with four in Sarawak and two in Sabah. The second phase will be in 2022, with five posts in Sarawak. The final phase will see five posts in Sarawak and three in Sabah.” – The Vibes, November 24, 2020
