PENANG: DAP has called on the government to prioritise affordable childcare, regularly update registered childcare centres on the Welfare Department website and formulate best practices for childcare facilities that are in line with international standards.
Its deputy secretary for International Affairs and Women wing vice-chairman Kasthuri Patto said it has been five years since five-month-old Adam Rayqal Muhd Sufi was found dead inside a refrigerator at the house of his unregistered babysitter, who had been operating illegally for two years before the incident.
“It has also been over a week since the death of two-month-old Qaseh Aulia at an unregistered daycare centre in Kota Damansara.
“Abuse, neglect, maltreatment and even the death of children at the hands of babysitters at childcare centres are nothing new in Malaysia and many questions pop up after such a tragedy.”
Kasturi queried how unregistered daycare centres are able to continue operating, where parents could check if a childcare facility is registered and how such incidents could be prevented.
She said childcare centres are given the green light to operate under the Welfare Department, with the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry approving their operation.
“In principle, this means that all daycare or childcare centres should be registered under the department.
“But a quick check on its website shows that the number of daycares or childcare centres is far fewer than if one searched for them on Google.”
She said on the department’s website, there is only one registered daycare centre under the category of “rumah” (house) in the Perai Southern District (PSD) in Penang.
“But on page one of a Google search, we could find 11 childcare centres, none of which was on the department’s website.
“A random check on daycare.my, the Malaysia Daycare Services Portal, also showed many daycare centres, but only one of them was on the department’s website.
“It is impossible to believe that in PSD, there is only one registered daycare centre operating from home when the district has a population of more than 235,000.”
Kasturi called on the department to immediately investigate the discrepancy in the numbers and act against unregistered daycare and childcare centres in the country.
She said the ministry encourages parents to use the department website as a guide to locating and vetting childcare centres.
“But if there are hardly any on its website, parents will likely source for unlicensed and unregistered daycare centres that are (within their budget) and nearer to their homes.”
Kasturi said in the UK, the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted) is responsible for inspecting facilities providing education and skills for all ages.
She also said Ofsted inspects childcare centres and regulates a range of early years and children’s social care services, among others, adding that this ensures such centres are suitable for children and potentially vulnerable young people.
“It also publishes reports of its findings, which can be used to improve the quality of education and training, and also inform policymakers about the effectiveness of such services.
“Ofsted reports directly to Parliament, parents, carers and commissioners, and we should have a similar system in place.”
