PASIR MAS, June 8 — The government has approved more than 2,000 job opportunities in stages this year, through the Malaysia Short-Term Employment Programme (MySTEP), to fill the required positions in the Social Welfare Department.
Deputy Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Siti Zailah Mohd Yusoff said that this was implemented due to the workload borne by officers at the Welfare Department, who had to face various problems faced by the community, such as domestic violence and sexual cases among teenagers.
“Following this, the ministry appealed to the government to increase employment opportunities involving the workforce at the department, to help address the problems because there are several states with dense populations that record the highest number of sexual cases,” she said.
She said this to reporters after presenting donations, in the form of mattresses, to flood victims in Kampung Bendang Perol, Gual To’Deh, here today.
Siti Zailah, who is also the Member of Parliament for Rantau Panjang, said that the community needed to work together to address the problems, and not rely on the authorities alone.
“Regarding the problems related to teenagers, parents need to play a role and monitor their children’s activities, especially those aged 18 and below; if necessary also look at their mobile phones because now all sorts of things can happen, especially on social media.
“It is very unfortunate if at a young age they are involved in various problems where there was no monitoring from parents, apart from the influence of friends or without a strong religious foundation,” he said. — Bernama
