Willie said some bank officers and private sector staff still fail to recognise Sarawak’s diverse native groups, which has led to individuals being questioned or required to provide additional documents.

“This is not about extra rights. It is to make daily dealings easier so that people do not have to bring numerous papers,” he said during the debate on the home ministry’s budget in the Dewan Rakyat today.

He cited a case where a Sarawakian Bumiputera was “looked down on” because a bank officer did not understand the ethnic groups in the state.

Willie said Sarawak has many Bumiputera groups, including the Iban, Penan, Melanau and other native peoples, but not all are Muslim.

He said this often leads to mistakes when staff rely solely on the visible parts of the MyKad.

Adding the Bumiputera status would help prevent such misunderstandings.

“I hope this is considered so that it does not spark unity issues,” he said.