Selangor Statistics Dept goes to ground to push for wider Padu adoption

By Yasmin Ramlan

SHAH ALAM, Jan 9 — In an effort to expand the reach of the government’s Central Database Hub (Padu), the Selangor Statistics Department (DOSM) is working vigorously to encourage more Malaysians to register under the system.

Its director Hartini Yaacob said physical counters will be set up at selected locations statewide, including in Digital Economy Centres (PEDi), to assist those who encounter issues registering with Padu since its launch on January 2.

The Federal government has set March 31 as the deadline for Padu’s registration.

She said DOSM is collaborating with MPs, state assemblymen, and the relevant Federal and state government agencies to help reach out to the public, particularly minority groups and those residing in rural areas.

“For Selangor DOSM, we will assist the public via physical counters at selected locations, which will be open throughout the next three months.

“Due to limited manpower, the number of counters available will be increased in stages every week. Simultaneously, we will also participate in public events and set up booths there.

“Over the past two weeks, we have received numerous requests from village heads and tok batin, particularly in Orang Asli settlements, as many of them are uncertain about the registration process,” she said during an interview with Selangor Journal today.

According to Hartini, DOSM has already mobilised its personnel to rural areas and Orang Asli settlements since the first day of Padu’s launch.

As of this morning, Padu — which will be used to fine-tune the distribution of government aid and subsidies — has garnered over a million registrations nationwide, just eight days after the system was launched and made accessible to the public.

Selangor makes up over one-fifth of this figure, with 208,910 registrations recorded as of midnight.

Putrajaya is encouraging all Malaysians aged 18 and above to update their personal information in Padu to avoid any oversights in accessing targeted government aid and other welfare programmes in the future.

Out of 7.2 million residents in Selangor, 4.8 million of them are above 18.

The public can register with Padu’s website, which is currently only available in the Malay language.

Users are required to key in their personal information and set a password for their account before they are issued a One-Time Password (OTP) via SMS. Following this, they must go through the electronic Know Your Customer (e-KYC) process to verify their identity.

Data accuracy is key

The director stressed the importance for the public to register with Padu, especially household heads, as it will help the government obtain a more comprehensive understanding of each family’s income and commitments.

“This allows the government to make accurate calculations on expenditure based on the provided data,” she said.

Despite controversies surrounding Padu, including data breach concerns, Hartini said the Economy Ministry, which is in charge of its rollout, has significantly enhanced its system.

She also guaranteed the system’s security is now robust.

“We have taken measures to strengthen security and address data breach concerns. This approach is far better than outsourcing the system to a vendor or third party.”

To ensure data transparency, the system is integrated with over 400 data points from various other relevant public agencies.

The scheduled operation of DOSM’s physical counters in Selangor this week (from January 8 to January 14) is as follow:

Gombak

1.  Lotus Rawang, (January 8 to January 14)
2.  PEDi Desa 1 (January 8 to January 9)
3.  PEDi Wangsa Permai (January 10 to January 14)

Klang

1. PEDi Kota Raja (January 8 to January 14)

Kuala Langat

1. PEDi Kanchong Darat (January 8 to January 10)
2. PEDi Telok Panglima Garang (January 8 to January 10)

Kuala Selangor

1.  PEDi Sg Sireh (January 9 to January 10)
2.  PEDi Felda Bukit Cerakah (January 13)

Petaling

1.  PEDi Shah Alam (January 8 to January 12)
2.  PEDi Sri Damansara (January 11)
3.  PEDi Kg Kubu Gajah (close from January 11) 

Sabak Bernam

1.  PEDi Kg Baru Nelayan (January 8 to January10)
2.  PEDi Bagan Nakhoda Omar (January 11 to January 14)

Sepang

1.  PEDi Hulu Chuchoh (January 8 to January 14)
2.  PEDi Taman Tenteram (January 9 to January 14)

Hulu Langat

1.  PEDi Semenyih, (January 8 to January 9, and from January 11 to January 14)
2.  PEDi Taman Ahmad Razali (January 8 to January 14)
3.  PEDi Taman Pinggiran Delima (January 8, January 11, and January 13)
4.  PEDi Bandar Tasik Kesuma, (January 8 to January9, and from January 11 to January 14)

Hulu Selangor

1.  PEDi Taman Bunga Raya (January 11,January 13, and January 14)
2.  PEDi Taman Desa Kelisa (January 8 to January 9, January 11, and from January 13 to January 14)
3.  PEDi Felda Soeharto, (January 8 to January 9, January 11, and from January 13 to January 14)
4.  PEDi Pekan Kuala Kubu Bharu, (January 8 to January 9, January 11, and from January 13 to January 14)