MCMC WILLING TO COLLABORATE WITH MOH IN ADDRESSING SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION - TEO

KUALA LUMPUR, March 13 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) is willing to collaborate with the Ministry of Health (MOH) to address the growing concern about social media addiction, particularly when it involves users' mental health, the Dewan Negara was told today.

Deputy Minister of Communications Teo Nie Ching said this was because the MCMC and the Ministry of Communications lack the expertise related to mental health issues.

“On the part of MCMC, we can issue guidelines and regulate platform providers to create safer standards for users under 18 years old. However, for adult users, I believe individuals should be held accountable for their own choices,” she said in reply to Senator Tuan Azahar Hassan during Question Time.

The senator wanted to know about the action taken by the ministry in tackling the issue of social media addiction and its negative repercussions on one’s behaviour, as well as mental and physical health.

Teo said MCMC is committed to raising awareness and educating the public on responsible and ethical use of social media through information-sharing initiatives.

“Among the efforts taken are the organising of skill training sessions for parents, guardians, and educators by the MCMC through two national-level initiatives, namely the ‘Klik Dengan Bijak’ (KDB) and the Malaysia ICT Volunteers (MIV).

“The participants are provided with information and exposure regarding online child protection, enabling them to share knowledge with children to raise awareness about online safety and balance internet usage with daily life,” she explained.

Teo said that the Communications Ministry, through MCMC, had also launched the Online Safety Campaign Tour on Jan 21, targeting all segments of society with various programmes and activities aimed at raising online safety awareness.

She said it includes safe and balanced use of the internet through talks, training, collaboration with social media influencers, training of trainers among student leaders and the use of educational materials based on special modules developed by MCMC according to target groups.

The ministry has also established collaboration with social media service provider TikTok and the Local Social Support Centre (PSSS) under the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (KPWKM), she said.

“Through its mobile unit during the campaign tour, the PSSS provides psychosocial services to the community, such as guidance and counselling sessions in the form of immediate relief to the target group on several social issues, including mental health,” she added.

-- BERNAMA