Voter Mismah found, denies fast-track citizenship

Mismah, who had her permanent resident status allegedly upgraded to citizenship in just four hours, was finally found by the media. She denied any irregularity in the granting of her Malaysian citizenship. "I follow the rules, not like what others have alleged," she was quoted by Malay daily Sinar Harian as saying. Mismah, who hailed from Bawaen, Indonesia, was upset over the accusation that her citizenship was obtained through the “back door”.

Last week, Mismah was found to have been categorised as a permanent resident on the National Registration Department (NRD) website, and yet she was listed in the Election Commission's electoral roll.Hours after a report on the matter was published, Mismah was subseqeuntly 'upgraded' by the NRD to Malaysian citizen.

The NRD later clarified that Mismah was granted citizenship in January this year after having been a permanent resident for 29 years, but the agency did not explain the discrepancy on its website.Pakatan Rakyat has claimed to have detected 1,597 such cases nationwide and demanded that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak call an emergency parliamentary sitting this month to debate the issue.

Granted PR status within months

"No, this is not true. I had been applying for Malaysian citizenship for years - not four hours, not four days and not four weeks," the soft-spoken woman told Sinar Harian when met at an undisclosed location in Kuala Lumpur.

According to the report, she was not aware of the controversy until she was informed by one of her children a few days ago.Fourty-seven-year-old Mismah said she came to Malaysia legally to work as a construction worker in 1982.

She first stayed at her grandmother's house in Keramat, Kuala Lumpur for two months before moving to a squatter area in Kayu Ara, Petaling Jaya, after getting married.

Mismah then proceeded to apply for permanent residency and was surprised to be granted the status a few months later."At that time, the process was simple, not like now," said Mismah in local Malay accent.

Three children are in civil service

But the application for citizenship took her 17 years - Mismah said she spent 12 years dealing with the authorities in Petaling Jaya and another five years with Immigration in Putrajaya.

Her four children and 70-year-old mother are all holders of blue MyKad, indicating that they are Malaysian citizens. Three of her children are civil servants while another has just completed his studies.

Mismah, who is currently working as a janitor in a direct sales company, had since moved out of Kayu Ara and now owns a terrace house.Sinar Harian said it tried looking for Mismah over the past one week and finally managed to do so after being tipped off by a reader.

However, the Malay-language tabloid did not say where Mismah is now living, but according to the Election Commission, she is a registered voter in Ijok, Kuala Selangor

Source : http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/172788