Permadu Malaysia

Myanmar refugees holding valid United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) cards remain subject to the Immigration Act 1959/63. As quoted by FMT , Malaysian news agency Bernama reported that the Immigration Director-General Zakaria Shaaban said UNHCR cardholders could be treated as undocumented migrants if they committed certain immigration offences, including working without a valid pass or permit. “Employers who employ UNHCR card-holding refugees without valid authorisation may also be subject to legal action,” he said in a statement today. Zakaria said the exemptions given to these refugees only covered two offences under the Immigration Act — not possessing valid travel documents or passes, and overstaying. Zakaria also denied that the immigration department had ever stated that Myanmar refugees holding UNHCR cards were not undocumented migrants. This followed media reports claiming that UNHCR cardholders could not be subjected to immigration action and were outside the ...

Media reported a former real estate consultant was today ordered to serve 10 years in jail and fined nearly RM228 million after the Court of Appeal allowed the prosecution’s final appeal to overturn his acquittal on corruption and money laundering charges. News portal FMT said a three-member bench, comprising Justices Zaini Mazlan, Wong Kian Kheong and Evrol Mariette Peters, found the prosecution had proved its case through circumstantial evidence when viewed cumulatively. Zaini, who delivered the broad grounds of judgment, said Amir Shariffuddin Abd Raub’s contention that the money he received was consultancy fees was not supported by any documentary evidence. He also said Amir’s relationship with former Johor executive councillor Latif Bandi was relevant in establishing his role as an influence peddler. Deputy public prosecutor Farah Ezlin Yusop Khan later confirmed the appeal’s outcome with the news portal. The bench sat in Johor Bahru. The bench subsequently issued a committal ord...

Puteri UMNO chief Puan Nurul Amal Fauzi said gig  work should not be the main source of income for Malaysian youth, FMT reported today. She said highly-qualified graduates were being forced to depend on gig work after failing to secure jobs that match their qualifications. “Gig work should not be the ultimate answer for young people with degrees who are unable to find suitable employment. I want to push the government to take this seriously,” she reportedly told the news portal when met at the Puteri UMNO office at Menara Tun Hussein Onn recently. According to a recent World Bank report, the gig sector has become one of the drivers of employment in Malaysia. The report, “Raising the Ceiling, Raising the Floor: The Jobs Agenda as a Productivity Agenda”, said the number of digital job platforms registered with Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation increased from 11 in 2016 to 123 in 2021, with an estimated 1.12 million gig workers. It also said that 31% of full-time gig workers said ...