Definitive results such as that of the recently concluded Sabah state elections, of the winner of the U.S. presidential election in November 2016 and many more have often defied the results of scores of public opinion surveys which show the opposite.
We have been forced to go online through a web browser on our PCs, through an app on our smartphones or receive softcopoies via email to check our telephone bills, utility bills, bank and credit card statements, make appointments to visit government departments' public service centres, apply online for permission to enter Sarawak, use MySejahtera, Selankah and other contact tracing apps on our smartphones to register our visits to a mall, supermarket and the outlets within, pay local authority parking charges and so forth.
However, whilst Many Malaysians as well as foreign nationals in Malaysia are expert at using their smartphones for messaging services such as WhatsApp, WeChat, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and other social media apps, I often have wondered how many can use their computers and smartphones for more serious and productive uses.
Well, the statement by the Statistics Department reported in The Star of 27 September 2020 reveals that only about 10 per cent of Malaysians had completed the online e-Census, which provides a definitive answer to my question.
Statistics Dept: About one in ten Malaysians have completed online census so far
Sunday, 27 Sep 2020
7:34 PM MYT
By REMAR NORDIN
JOHOR BARU: The Statistics Department says about one in 10 Malaysians have completed the Census 2020 online.
Chief statistician and Census 2020 commissioner Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said to date, about 10% have filled their information through the e-Census form in the first phase of Census 2020, which ends on Sept 30.
He also expressed confidence the department would reach its target of 10 million – or 30% of the total Malaysian population of 32 million – participating in the census online.
"There are still a few days left before the first phase ends and we hope that those who have not filled in their information to do so to avoid congestion on the e-Census website.
"The first phase is being implemented through the e-Census, while the second phase, via face-to-face interview, will be from Oct 7 to Oct 24 where we hope to be able to achieve 100% completion," he said when met by reporters at the e-Census clinic at Johor police headquarters here on Sunday (Sept 27).
The e-Census clinic was also attended by Johor police chief Comm Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay.
He added that more than 1,000 e-Census clinics have been set up across the country that operate every day to help with data gathering, which is conducted every 10 years by the government to determine the number of people living in the country, including foreigners.
"Our investigations revealed that the public awareness of the Census 2020 is very high, it is just that we have the habit of doing things at the last minute," he said, adding that he is confident the number would continue to grow in the coming days.
The e-census website is accessible at ecensus.mycensus.gov.my/landing.
I completed my e-Census form online and found it to be a challenging ordeal not for the faint-hearted.
And now the Statistics Department is chasing people to pre-register before the end of today (30 September 2020) to received the invitation to complete the e-Census form online.
What happens if you don't complete the e-Census 2020?
Wednesday, 30 Sep 2020
3:00 PM MYT
By Angelin Yeoh
Today is the last day for members of the public to pre-register to receive their Invitation Code (IC) for the e-Census 2020.
To do so, visit the e-Census website, click on First Time user or go here for the pre-registration page.
The public are advised to check their Spam or Junk folder to see if the e-Census email may have ended up there.
After receiving the 11-digit IC which is meant to represent their household, Malaysians can then use it to login on the e-Census website to fill in the questionnaire.
Then, they have until Oct 6 to complete and submit the questionnaire.
According to an FAQ, the Statistics Department encourages more people to participate in the Census 2020 online as a way of maintaining physical distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The FAQ stated for those who missed the e-Census questionnaire online submission period, a surveyor will visit their homes for a face-to-face interview using a tablet, smartphone or questionnaire from Oct 7 onwards.
Chief statistician and Census 2020 commissioner Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin in a Sept 27 report said only about one in 10 Malaysians had completed the e-Census 2020.
"The first phase is being implemented through the e-Census, while the second phase, via face-to-face interview, will be from Oct 7 to Oct 24 where we hope to be able to achieve 100% completion," he said.
The Census Act 1960, Section 9(2) makes it mandatory for members of the public to answer all questions in the census form and Section 17(1) states that failure to comply may result in a fine of no more than RM100 or prison term of no more than six months or both.
In other news, users also have until 11:59pm tonight (Sept 30) to utilise the ePenjana credit in their eWallets before it expires. Any unused balance will be removed from the eWallet.
Users may still be able to spend or use some of the additional incentives introduced by eWallet providers beyond the Sept 30 ePenjana deadline. They just need to reload enough cash into the eWallet and check the campaign announcements in the app for more information.
Thankfully, for those who have not filled in the e-Census online, the Statistics Department will be sending out their enumerators to interview households face-to-face for Census 2020.
I hope they will reveal how many people answered the e-Census online.
I don't expect that that many more have answered the e-Census 2020 online since 27 September 2020 and this should be an indication to app developers, banks, insurance companies, financial institutions, telephone and utility companies, federal and state governments, local authorities and so forth not to be TECHNO-FASCISTS by forcing people to resort to using apps and go online to check their bills, make applications, make payments and so forth.
NO! TO TECHNO-FASCISM.
Yours truly
IT.Scheiss
