GEORGE TOWN, June 2 — More than half of the homes for the elderly in Penang remain unlicenced despite the state government’s efforts to register them, state executive councillor Chong Eng revealed in the state legislative assembly here today.
“We have been advising and reaching out to these centres to apply for licence but it is not easy to get them to come forward,” she replied to PKR backbencher A. Kumaresan representing Batu Uban. “These are centres for babies or senior citizens so we can’t be going in to take the babies or senior citizens away, where are we to place them? So what we can do is to advise and engage them to encourage them to register,” she said.
Chong said the state has allocated RM300,000 for a three-year period until 2023 as grants to upgrade nurseries and daycare centres.