PUTRAJAYA, March 18 — Individuals who are eligible for government assistance but do not update their data in the Central Database Hub (Padu) by the end of this month are at risk of being left out from the first round of aid eligibility determination after the targeted subsidy programme is implemented.

Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli said those individuals would have to wait for the next round when Padu reopens for updates at a regular frequency level that will be determined by the government later.

He said updating Padu by March 31 is important so that existing data can be worked on and algorithm development can be done to determine eligibility parameters including disposable income, family’s basic living expenses and discretionary income.

"We have to follow the accurate timeline for the implementation of the targetted subsidy programme and that timeline requires the data to be ready by March 31, 2024.

"The updating process will not be permanently closed, but I’m sure if we keep it open and they still hesitate (to register and update their data), it won’t do any good,” he told a press conference here today.

Rafizi said the next step would be developing the API (Application Programming Interface) so that those over 300 government databases are connected and updated automatically in Padu.

"That’s what we mean by creating a central government database that is updated close to real-time,” he said.

Meanwhile, Rafizi also refuted a news portal’s report that the public were disappointed when most of the registration service counters they went to, were closed.

Explaining the issue, the minister said the Padu and Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) team had been on the ground since the first week of January and had opened counters in localities which were deemed more effective.

"Since January, we have received many requests from residents’ associations, elected representatives, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for the Padu and DOSM teams to open counters in their areas.

"In Selangor, for example, DOSM counters are open seven days a week from morning to night. It is not true to say that the counters are closed, as if the officers are not working, that is not true,” he said. — Bernama