After Chaotic Rollout Teo Says New 999 Emergency Call System User Tested

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PARLIAMENT | Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching has affirmed that the Next Generation Malaysian Emergency Response Services 999 System (NG Mers 999) was subjected to user-related tests prior to its rollout.
Addressing the Dewan Rakyat today, the Kulai MP said user acceptance tests (UAT) for the system, which utilises a mobile application developed by Telekom Malaysia (TM), were conducted up to October.
“The UAT was conducted together with the police on July 11, the Civil Defence Force on July 27, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency on Sept 3, as well as with the Fire and Rescue Department on Sept 23.
“The Health Ministry conducted the UAT five times, and it was finally accepted on Oct 7,” the deputy minister said in her winding-up speech for the Supply Bill 2026 at the committee stage.
Teo, however, did not address a query by opposition lawmaker Khairil Nizam Khirudin (PN-Jerantut), who sought clarity on the coverage of the UATs and whether they had been carried out equally in urban and rural areas.
Following the NG Mers 999 system’s implementation on Nov 15, the public had complained that emergency calls had failed to get through, with some claiming that ambulances were mistakenly sent to faraway locations beyond their jurisdiction.
On Nov 20, the Health Ministry temporarily reverted its medical emergency call and ambulance dispatching system to the old Mers 999 system, with an expert in the medical dispatch system urging for “sandbox” tests before the system’s nationwide application.
‘Under control’
Teo, however, told the lower house today that the situation is now “under control” after TM added more agents to their call centres.
Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching“Even though incoming calls are still much higher compared to the old (Mers 999) platform, 95 percent of calls are answered within eight seconds, in accordance with the SLA (service level agreement) signed between the government and TM,” she explained.
Admitting that many emergency calls had gone unanswered following the new system’s roll-out, Teo attributed the issue to a sharp increase in requests for aid, noting that on the old Mers 999 platform, daily incoming calls averaged around 28,000.
“But, for whatever reason, when NG Mers 999 began official operations on Nov 15, a total of 50,000 incoming calls were recorded, followed by 60,000 on the next day.
“On Nov 17, (the figure increased to) 61,000; 55,000 on Nov 18; 38,000 each on the 19 and 20; 49,000 (21); 53,000 (22), and yesterday, 50,000,” she detailed.
TM previously said on Nov 20 that while the previous system averaged around 50,000 calls per day, the new NG Mers 999 received close to 70,000 calls per day.
The public listed telecommunications company claimed then that only “about five percent of the calls were genuine emergencies, with the rest being silent and prank calls.”
It also said that NG Mers 999 was implemented as the previous system had reached its technical limits and could no longer support the country’s evolving emergency requirements.
Mobile phone still usable
Teo also sought to dispel misconceptions that the introduction of the new emergency system equates to the abolishment of the old Mers 999 system.
“You can still use your mobile phone to call 999 as usual.
“At the same time, there is a new app that has been developed so that those who have issues, such as hearing impairments or are unable to make a call, can use the app,” she stressed, noting that as of yesterday, the “Save Me 999” app has been downloaded 247,000 times.
A total of 61,000 registrations have also been recorded.
RM1.25b cost
The deputy minister noted that the RM1.25 billion cost for the NG Mers 999 system is for a 12-year concession period, with the contract allocating one year for development and 11 years for operations.
The initial decision to develop the NG Mers 999 system as a replacement for the Mers 999 system, Teo said, was determined following the approval of a cabinet memorandum tabled by the communications minister on Nov 13, 2020.
The communications and multimedia minister under the Perikatan Nasional administration at the time was Saifuddin Abdullah (PN-Indera Mahkota).
“The development of the NG Mers 999 system is done through a public-private partnership via direct negotiations with TM, based on a service-rental model.
“The Public Private Partnership Unit under the Prime Minister’s Department is to lead negotiations between the government and TM to finalise the cost, rental period, project scope, terms and conditions of the agreement, as well as other matters related to the development of the new system,” Teo said.
She added that it was agreed that the NG Mers 999 maintenance and operations management contract be extended under the existing terms and conditions until the system is “fully developed and operational.”
The Mers 999 system was implemented in 2007 to provide a comprehensive and integrated emergency line service, with TM appointed at the time also through direct negotiations to develop the project with a total cost of RM801.55 million.
The Auditor-General’s Report 2012 previously detailed that the Mers 999 project was marred by irregularities, including payments made by the Communications Ministry despite the lack of an acceptance letter and incomplete supporting documents.
Among other transgressions, the ministry was said to have paid RM3.19 million on promotional and publicity programmes that were later cancelled, according to a 2013 The Edge report.
The committee set up to monitor the project also failed to administer the government contract, resulting in improper payments amounting to RM13.54 million.
Login issues
Addressing concerns from backbencher Oscar Ling (Harapan-Sibu) on the supposedly complicated nature of the login process for the new app, Teo conceded that the Communications Ministry is “also not very satisfied with the app.”
“We asked why (Putrajaya’s national digital identity system) MyDigital ID cannot be used for a single login (process). TM has taken note of this and has contacted MyDigital ID.
“I believe users won’t need such a complicated registration process soon (as) they can just use MyDigital ID.
“The reason given by TM is that the app has been developed since 2024 - maybe at that time, MyDigital ID wasn’t fully ready yet, which is why they didn’t use it for the single-login system,” she said. - Mkini

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