KUALA LUMPUR – Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today urged the government to immediately cease all mandatory data collection from the MySejahtera app until it can guarantee users’ privacy.
In a statement, the PKR president said this is to rebuild the confidence of the people in using the contact-tracing app.
“If we are indeed in an endemic phase, there is no further need for invasive contact tracing. Now is the time to allow these temporarily needed measures to expire,” Anwar, who is Port Dickson MP, said.
“The collection of data by any organisation or government without an expressly stated objective leaves said data highly vulnerable to abuse and represents a clear and dangerous dereliction of duty on the part of the collectors.”
Last month, Anwar said the government must explain the involvement of a Singaporean company in the management of the MySejahtera, which could expose the nation to potential security risks.
He also called for an independent investigation into MySejahtera’s ownership, and that the government must bring the matter to Parliament for debate.
A report by Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) revealed that the developer of MySejahtera, KPISoft Malaysia, had in 2020 changed its name to Entomo Malaysia. The renamed entity is listed as wholly owned by Singapore-based Entomo Pte Ltd.
The report said that the cabinet had last year decided to transfer ownership of MySejahtera from the developer to a special purpose vehicle called MySJ Sdn Bhd, which was appointed through direct negotiation.
Anwar said PAC’s investigation, which was corroborated by his own probe, revealed a lack of transparency in the app’s development and how politically connected individuals are looking to profit from the emergency measure involving the data of some 38 million residents.
Anwar also called on the Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin to prove that the data of Malaysians were not at risk to commercial or nefarious interests at home or abroad.
“This government must do all in their power to prevent such negligence, while reaffirming that the data rightfully belongs to the people, not the government,” Anwar said.
“As the rest of the world carries on, Malaysia’s snail-paced adaptation to change, bereft of any new ideas, is holding back our severely needed return to the world and economic recovery, while furthering the disinheritance of our children’s futures.” – The Vibes, April 28, 2022
