Kota Kinabalu: Consumers Front of Sabah President Nordin Thani has urged that the Ministry of Transport explore expanding the use of MyKad to include driver’s licences in the digitisation plans.
Responding to the recent digitisation initiatives announced by the Minister of Transport Anthony Loke, Nordin said that MyKad should be considered instead of the new applications for handphones and other devices.
“Our MyKad is the world’s first smart identity card with a microchip that holds numerous pieces of data, including biometrics,” said Nordin in a statement, here, Tuesday.
He believes that MyKad is underutilised in Sabah and is solely used for identification in comparison to Semenanjung, particularly in Klang Valley.
“It is commonly used as prepaid smart cards to pay for senior citizen public transportation, unlimited rail travel, bus travel passes, and other services.”
Eligible travellers can top up with credit to spend on travel by reloading a minimal amount of money into their MyKad. Tapping the MyKad at the train or bus gates before or after boarding will immediately deduct any fares owed.
“It is more convenient for consumers as they constantly carried their MyKad with them in their wallets or handbags instead of using applications.
“It would also save the Ministry of Transport money on licence card printing,” he added.
He said that access to reliable network coverage in Sabah is still very poor, and rural areas have lagged far behind in terms of mobile broadband and network coverage.
“Installing and executing applications would necessitate adequate network coverage, which would cause inconvenience to customers in afflicted locations,” he said.
On the use of special SMED (Smart Enforcement Device) equipment announced by the Road Transport Department’s (JPJ) Director General Datuk Zailani Hashim to check drivers’ information on the field through vehicle plate numbers and identification card numbers should the network coverage fail, Nordin said since the SMED is deployed, inserting the MyKad into the device could read and access the driver’s details and records on the spot since SMED are capable of reading microchips regardless of whether the device is “online” connected to a network or “off-line” disconnected from a network.
“The road tax collected is, in fact, another source of government revenue that is not solely used for road maintenance and improvement.
“A certain proportion or quantity of road tax revenue received in Sabah should be channelled back to Sabah for the purpose of maintaining our terrible roads.
“The state government’s distribution of funds for transportation infrastructure is insufficient to deal with the existing status of our roads,” he said.
“In addition to adding a driver’s licence to the MyKad system, perhaps the relevant authority should consider adding digital domestic passports or passes for domestic immigration control for locals to enter or depart the state by using automated self-service barriers for faster clearance at the airport,” he said.
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