Kota Kinabalu: Warisan President Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal (pic) denied allegations of his involvement in approving identification documents to foreigners following a viral letter on social media recently.
The former Chief Minister insisted that during his tenure he only signed letters of support to assist applicants, particularly from rural areas, while emphasising that the final approval rests entirely with the National Registration Department (NRD).
He said his actions were merely to facilitate assistance when facing difficulties in obtaining identification documents, especially children in remote areas who lacked birth certificates or identification cards.
“Do not just focus on the letter itself, but look at its actual purpose. As a leader, when people come seeking support, how can I turn them away?
“Sometimes they are desperate, out of five children, one may not have an identification card. So as their leader at the time, I helped.
“If they come to my office, it is my responsibility to assist, but the final decision lies with NRD, not me,” he said on arrival at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport, Wednesday.
The Senallang Assemblyman also said during his administration, the State Government implemented several initiatives to ensure children in rural Sabah could obtain valid identification documents.
Among efforts were the mobile court programme spearheaded by former Chief Justice Tun Richard Malanjum which provided rural residents with opportunities to register and obtain their identification documents.
“We realise many children in Sabah still lacked identification documents.
“That is why we launched special programmes, including collaborating with Malanjum to mobilise mobile courts for registration,” he said.
Shafie urged critics not to jump to conclusions without understanding the true intent behind his actions.
“I have no authority to issue identification cards in this country, I am not the Home Minister nor am I the National Registration Department. So do not make baseless accusations.
“Whether this letter is genuine or not, thousands of letters requesting support came to me. But we are not the kind of leaders who ignore the common people,” he said.
