KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 17 — The Home Ministry is aware about a patent right dispute pertaining to the infringement of Malaysia’s e-passport chip technology between the previous and current vendors.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the subject was a legal matter between the two companies but the ministry was concerned over it.
“They (the companies) have got to resolve the matter among themselves. I am following through with the action taken by the new vendor,” he said in an interview recently.
Ahmad Zahid was responding to reports that the previous vendor Iris Corp Bhd was considering taking legal action against current vendor Datasonic Group Bhd and the authorities for alleged infringement of its e-passport chip technology.
Iris produced the first electronic passport and national multi-application smart card.
Speaking on claims that there are plans by the new passport to be made in China, Ahmad Zahid said that would never happen.
“I have told the Home Ministry secretary general to put conditions that the new passport supplier (Datasonic) has to produce the passports locally. The vendor must accept that the continuity of the passport issuance has to be done by the previous supplier,” he said
Ahmad Zahid added that the ministry has conducted a study on the details of the passport production process locally and the cost factor should not arise.
“Even other countries have engaged our printers to produce their passports because it is comparative in terms of cost,” he said.
On June 16, Malay Mail in an exclusive report revealed that the Immigration Department was struggling to cope with demand because it did not have sufficient stock of passports as a large number of chips used in the data page in the passports had defects and were rejected by the National Printing Department.
The department prints the booklets while Datasonic Group Bhd provides them with the bio-data polycarbonate data page, known as the E-data page, with a microchip in it. The E-data page, which holds information of the passport bearer, is then integrated into the passport by the department.
The report also highlighted the plight of the rakyat who had to queue outside passport offices as early as 4am because of the limited number of passport booklets.
On July 28, following queries by the Malay Mail, Zahid instructed the National Printing Department to print more passports with immediate effect to overcome the serious shortage in the country.
Ahmad Zahid said he had told the department to increase the production of passports from 5,000 to 20,000 daily.
