The National Registration Department's (NRD) statement yesterday in Putrajaya that it issues the MyKad only to those eligible has been dismissed outright by some in Sabah.

A quick straw poll conducted by former Sabah PKR deputy chief Daniel John Jambun among party members and non-members showed consensus that the NRD is "a sick department" in Sabah.

illegal immigrants roundup 010305 group It is perceived as being above the law in a state swamped by 1.7 million - Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) estimate - illegal immigrants.

"The NRD failed to address several key points raised by PKR vice-president Jeffrey Gapari Kitingan - in his earlier statement on the continuing MyKad scam in Sabah," said Daniel who is deputy chair of Sabah PKR's powerful KadazanDusunMurut Task Force headed by Jeffrey.

"For example, the NRD did not explain how a nine times convicted Indonesian mastermind could still carry on issuing MyKads to illegal immigrants ."

For starters, said Daniel, the NRD should explain why it refused to attend the federal cabinet committee meetings on illegal immigrants in Sabah getting their hands on MyKads.

If the NRD and the Immigration Department had cooperated with committee, there would have had a royal commission of inquiry by now on the NRD, he added.

"This is the reason why both departments deliberately sabotaged the committee. They have never responded to committee chairman Bernard Giluk Dompok's public statements on the matter."

Another important area which the NRD failed to address is several publications by local author MD Mutalib on the MyKad scam, Daniel pointed out.

suhakam roundtable kk sabah 020806 dr chong eng leong The latest, he added, was in July last year, 'Lest We Forget - Security and Sovereignty of Sabah ' by anti-illegal immigration activist Dr Chong Eng Leong ( left ).

"Dr Chong unveiled a list of 200,000 illegal immigrants who have been given the MyKad in Sabah and the details kept in Putrajaya and not at Sabah NRD.

"Bogus statutory declarations were accepted in lieu of late birth registrations."

Apparently, he had discovered that the illegal immigrants have been listed by the NRD in their MyKads as Malays, a community forming only a tiny number in Sabah.

Another person who should be hauled to court by the NRD is former PKR Libaran division chief Hassnar Ebrahim, suggested Daniel.

"By his own admission, he's a former MyKad operative working with the NRD to issue the document to illegal immigrants.

" hassnar ebrahim 291009 01 Hassnar has openly challenged the NRD and police several to drag him to court but so far this has been greeted by an ominous silence," fumed Daniel.

"Here is a man openly regretting his past involvement with the MyKad scam but nothing is being done by the law enforcement authorities.

"This is a man who wants to put things right for the sake of his fellow Sabahans."

Hassnar ( right) has previously detailed for Malaysiakini how he personally issued MyKads to 15,000 illegal immigrants while he was in Umno and placed them on the electoral rolls.

He also has personal knowledge of other operatives issuing the MyKad to 135,000 illegal immigrants until 1985 and placing them on the electoral rolls.