Shocking 1Malaysia - Sabahan non-Muslims registered with 'Islam' as their religion on their MyKads !!

Sabah PKR leader revealed that thousands Sabahan non-Muslims have been registered with 'Islam' as their religion on their MyKads.

According to PKR Sabah deputy chief Christina Liew, they were assumed to be Muslims by the National Registration Department (NRD) solely because of the bin or binti in their names.

The situation has also arisen because many Sabahans have Muslim-sounding names though they do not profess the religion, she said.

Just as it is common for non-Muslims in Sabah to go by names commonly used by Muslims, many Muslims in Sabah also go by names usually associated with Christians.

Many non-Muslims have complained that their religious status in MyKads have either been left empty - with the words tiada (none) for 'religion' - or a religion which is not theirs is entered in their identity documents.

According to sources, the NRD in Putrajaya had warned its Sabah office against going ahead with the dialogue with Liew out of suspicions that she may also raise the issue of illegal immigrants being issued MyKads meant for nationals.

Further compounding the problem is the practice by the NRD of unilaterally giving Muslim names to non-Muslims in the rural areas of Sabah and Sarawak “to make it easier for them to get birth certificates,” alleged Liew.