Document selling syndicates: More enforcement needed - Hamzah

He said that it was even more worrying as these syndicates are being masterminded by local people, resulting in foreigners living in this country for many years without valid documents.

"To enter Malaysia you must have valid documents. The problem here is that our people are involved in syndicates which charge fees and then flee with the money.

"Hence, in the end, there are (foreigners) who have lived here for 20 to 30 years here without documents, to the point that they do not want to return to their country of origin and then apply for citizenship status. This makes me angry; they (syndicate members) must be arrested," he said.

He said this after officiating a marriage registration ceremony and presenting National Registration Department (NRD) documents, here today.

Previously, the police busted members of several syndicates, including the president of a political party, who was believed to be involved in the fraudulent activity of issuing identity cards.

Syndicate activities include fraudulently offering a data card with QR code, which is claimed to allow the applicant to obtain a Malaysian Identity Card (Mykad).