Reiterating that the project was a private sector initiative and does not involve public funds, Najib said signing up for the 1MY E-mail would be on a voluntary basis.
He explained that the initiative had been evaluated by the Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu) and announced as one of seven new projects under the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP).
Read more: MY: Prime Minister: Signing up for 1MY E-mail is voluntary
The project, said Prime Minister Najib Razak, in announcing it at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre in Putrajaya today, will allow direct and secure communications between citizens and the government.
Its purpose is also to enhance the delivery of government services to consumers and businesses alike.
In fact, the service infrastructure provided and will be provided by the government is extended to rural areas, and not just focused on urban and suburban areas as promised by the opposition in its master plan, dubbed the Orange Book.
An information, communication and technology (ICT) enthusiast, Muhammad Nizam Ismail, said the plan by the opposition was just an attempt to pull the wool over the people's eyes because it knew the service was already made available in most areas.
Read more: MY: Free WiFi: Government Provides While Opposition Continues Making Promises
“This clearly shows that we are very serious about ensuring that our cities are safe and free from all physical, social and mental threats,” said Kamalruddin Shamsudin, deputy director-general of the Federal Department of Town and Country Planning Peninsular Malaysia.
EC Chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof said the commission would first have to scrutinize the system before the implementation.
“Although the system was capable of detecting multiple voting and ensuring transparency, it needed to be scrutinised before being implemented because it would be very costly,” Abdul Aziz said in a statement.