The Home Ministry and its minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi were taken to task by Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy today for imposing "impossible conditions" on stateless people.

Ramasamy said the state executive council meeting yesterday advised him to send a letter to the minister on the plight of the stateless people.

He said Ahmad Zahid, the newly-minted deputy prime minister, was very vocal about 1Malaysia Development Bhd issues but was not interested in solving problems of Malaysians who are stateless.

Ramasamy said since February 2013, the stateless task force formed by the Penang government could only resolve 37 out of 553 cases of people born in Malaysia but do not have citizenship.

These cases involve late registrations for birth certificates, identity cards, applications for citizenship and immigration cases, he said.

Of the 553 cases, 170 cases still are “pending further action”, while five cases have been referred to the court to decide on citizenship, Ramasamy ( seated on the left in photo ) said.

"The challenges the task force faces, among others, is the long processing time. Many of the applicants also give up as the process is arduous, especially for those in their 50s and 60s," he said.

"Our officers are only mediators, who make sure all papers are in order. However, even after two years, we are not informed of the status of the applications," he added.

"It is up to the whims and fancies of the Home Ministry as to when to reply to us," he stressed.

32 red IC cases not tackled since 2013

Ramasamy cited a case in 2013, in which the task force submitted 32 applications for those with red identity cards.

However, the 32 were told to go to the main National Registration Department office in Putrajaya.

"Up to now, there is no reply of their status. These are poor people, who do not have much resources to follow this up," Ramasamy lamented.

He said one of the requirements for citizenship applicants is a Bahasa Malaysia test, which is a big challenge for those in their 70s who are only fluent in their mother tongue.

He cited another case of a person born in Singapore, denied citizenship, despite being Malaysians.

"After nearly 60 years of independence, we still have this nightmare, which makes us really question the role of the Home Ministry and the National Registration Department.

"People born in Malaysia are still given the run-around and this is really frustrating," he stressed, adding, "I detect a deliberate attempt to deny some Malaysians their citizenship."