PENDANG: More than 7.36 million Malaysian citizens, or 35% of the country’s population, have updated their information on the Central Database Hub (Padu), says chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin.

He said the Statistics Department was optimistic that more people would do so in the last few days before the March 31 deadline, following greater awareness programmes by the government.

“We expect a significant increase. Until yesterday, there were about 7.36 million registrations, which exceeds 35% of those aged 18 and above – we estimate around 20 million Malaysian citizens are in that age group.

“The data also includes dependents under 18 years old, so the actual number exceeds 10 million when including all dependents,” he said at the Jelajah Padu tour involving the Siamese community at Kampung Tok Set here yesterday.

Bernama reported that some 100 Kampung Tok Set villagers registered with Padu with Statistics Department staff facilitating the registration and verification process.

Mohd Uzir said besides dissemination through mass media, official media and social media, they also went to rural areas to explain to residents who are still unclear and unfamiliar with Padu.

“In any case, we had expected this and we are prepared for a massive influx.

“For example, on Saturday, we recorded over 300,000 registrations in a single day, and we expect it to reach up to 800,000 registrations,” he said.

He said the department would also open more physical counters to facilitate public registration and to prevent errors.

On Padu registrations in Kedah, Mohd Uzir said statistics show that 33% or approximately 533,000 residents had registered so far.

“About 41.8% of Kedah’s youths have registered, the highest in Malaysia so far, while some 207,000 senior citizens have also registered with Padu. These figures are encouraging,” he said.

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/03/25/massive-influx-expected-as-padu-deadline-nears