Women, family and community development minister Nancy Shukri said the department would prepare a detailed report on the chronology, history and development of the case.

“The police are also conducting an investigation into this case, and I assure that the ministry and its agency will give their full cooperation,” she said in a statement today.

The boy was admitted to the Sultan Ismail Hospital on Dec 23 after fainting at a house in Senggarang, Batu Pahat. He died three days later.

Nancy said the ministry would explore all possibilities to streamline preventive measures, including the need for stricter and heavier punishments for abusers.

She said this was to ensure that such cases did not recur and to teach a lesson to parents or guardians who were negligent in caring for their children.

“In addition to physical injuries, child abuse cases can cause long-term mental health implications such as depression, especially for victims of unreported cases,” she said.

Nancy also said her priority was to assess current policies involving children and to bring about comprehensive improvements for the protection, monitoring and social development of children.

She urged the public who had information about child abuse cases to report them to the ministry via the Talian Kasih hotline at 15999 or WhatsApp at 019-2615999 or to contact the authorities immediately.