By Muhammad Faiz
PUTRAJAYA, 28 July 2017: The Ministry of Higher Education has agreed to reconsider giving students an extension period for them to retrieve their Kad Diskaun Siswa 1Malaysia (KADS1M Flash) as Bank Rakyat will be resolving a number problems faced by the bank.
This was the decision arrived at following a meeting of representatives of Students’ Representative Council (SRC) with officials of the Ministry of Higher Education yesterday (27 July). The meeting also highlighted the importance for students who have any enquiries on the matter to inform the said Ministry so that adjustments could be made in special cases.
Present at the meeting, which was held at the Ministry in Putrajaya from 2.30 p.m to 5.00 p.m., were the Ministry’s Deputy Secretary-General (Management), Dato’ Kamel bin Mohamed, and a representative from Bank Rakyat, Khairil Datuk Hamzah, who is the Vice President (Card Business).
In March this year, IIUMToday reported on the KADS1M highlighting the need for students to apply for the card. It also reported a meeting that students had with IIUM’s Finance Director on issues pertaining to the card and the importance for students to apply for the facility. (http://news.iium.edu.my/2017/03/06/apply-for-your-kads1m-before-31-march-finance-director/)
Unfortunately, as of end of March, the system faced backlashes due to some problems that have caused a delay and some students were forced to reapply for the second time. There were also issues of students getting the email late, and the card arriving late, even after the recipients have been notified for collection by the email.
According to SRC representative, who is the chairperson of Academic and Career, Muhammad Afif Rahman, the problem occurred due to, among others, the management of Bank Rakyat.
As confirmed by the Bank Rakyat official, who was at the meeting, they were faced with problems of shortage of staff to handle the cards. There were also some technical glitches and miscommunication between them and the students.
However, he told the meeting that Bank Rakyat is now working hard to make sure that every student will receive his or her card soon. The bank has extended their working hours, having counters open on Saturday, and even pulling staffs from headquarters to help.
The bank official also stressed the importance for students to keep checking updates on their bank’s website if they are still waiting for confirmation email, as there are some cases where the cards have already been sent to them but the recipients are yet to receive the email.
“There are different kinds of problems regarding the matter, so it is very important for the recipients to keep checking their status at the website, and I hope IIUM students would be patient, and if there are any enquiries, you may go direct to the source,” he added.
Students have been advised to check the status of their application here at: https://bppt.bankrakyat.com.my/semakan/
For any enquiries, students may contact SRC representatives, Afif Rahman at 013-2066248 or Siti Sabarina at 019-2583752. Students may even contact Bank Rakyat directly at their hotline number, 1-300-80-5454. ***
