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7th October, 2008
PENAMPANG : It was no fault of their own that they were born in a foreign land.And now two “Sabahans” are asking the Malaysian Government to accord them their rightful citizenship: Malaysian.
Alice Chui Pee and Stephan George,now 52,said they deserved the right of citizenship as their parents are Sabahan.The matter is only that they were not born in the state.
Alice was born in Singapore in 1956 but was brought back home together with her two other siblings in 1959.Her father Chiu Yun Fatt and mother Theresa Tsen were both from Papar.
She was issued a green identification card bearing the number H004791 during the Berjaya era in 1981.From then on,she had tried for years to get her Malaysian citizenship but all her application were to no avail.
Being a green IC holder,Alice admitted to be living a stressful life.She was unable to apply for job,to open a bank account as well as to travel to peninsular just to witness her daughter’s graduation.
“I did not make it to my first daughter’s graduation day in June this year in Kuala Lumpur because I did go,the authority will surely designate me as an illegal immigrant.
“I have been living in Sabah ever since the age of three and never left Kota Kinabalu for holidays except once when the immigration allowed me through special terms and conditions to accompany my second daughter to Kuala Lumpur for an urgent medical examination,” she said.
Even if Alice could not be given citizenship,she appealed that the authority concerned could at least issue her a permanent resident (PR) status.
She had made an application for the status to the Chief Minister in September 2006,in which she requested him to consider granting her the status.
As a genuine Sabahan,she felt being a stateless person.Her last attempt to apply for the PR status was in February this year but did not get the desired result.
Stephan,on the other hand,has got a PR but is still not pleased with the status as he feels that he deserves the right for a citizenship.
Born In Brunei in 1956,he was brought back home by his father of Labuan origin and mother who hailed from Kg Kibabaig here in 1958.
He started applying for the citizenship status back in 1976 but nothing good materialised.Every time he called the National Department (NRD) office,he was told that the xase was still in process.
“Whenever I called the office to get the latest development of my application,the answer will be it is still in the final stage of processing.This happened numerous times,” he said.
Feeling frustrated,Stephan decided to seek the help of Tan Sri Bernard Dompok in 1997 to reapply but the reply was that it was still going through thorough check and revision.
In 2004,Datuk Madius Tangau helped him to write another letter to the NRD and,as usual,the reply was the same with the previous ones.
“This time,I wan to make this clear that I am no longer begging or applying for the status. I am asking for my right of a citizenship.
“I am urging the authority concerned to walk the talk.Let me have my citizenship because it was not my fault to be born in a foreign land. I am still and always will be a Malaysian because my parents are Malaysians,” he stressed.
Stephan who had the opportunity to serve in the government for 30 years since the Usno era said his PR status deprived him from buying even a small piece of land to build a house.
He questioned the government’s swift action in awarding their national badminton coach,Indonesian Rexy Mainaky,a PR instantaneously after bringing the national team to glory in the sport.
“Why is it so hard for them to issue genuine Sabahans who were born outside the country the Mykad? I also want to know what takes them so long to process my application.”
He was surprised to receive a letter from the NRD early this year which asked him to make a new application of which he did.
However,he received a reply two weeks ago that his application had been handed over to the police with the reason that it needed to go through proper procedure.
“What I need is my citizenship of which I feel that I have the right to own it as a genuine son of the soil,” he said.
Stephan and Alice voiced their frustration out during a press conference at the Upko Kepayan branch office yesterday.Present to give them the support needed were Dompok and Donald Peter Mojuntin. – JOSEPH JUPIOL
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