PUTRAJAYA: Fraud involving claims under the Daya Kerjaya 2.0 employment incentive programme was uncovered by PERKESO through data scrutiny and the use of artificial intelligence (AI), with swift action by its Anti-Fraud Division helping to prevent about RM5.33mil from being siphoned off.
PERKESO chief executive officer Datuk Seri Dr Mohammed Azman Aziz Mohammed said the Anti-Fraud, Ethics and Integrity Division began assessments and inspections at the end of 2024.
He said information identified as having elements of fraud was subsequently handed over to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in Aug 2025 for further action.
“Through the swift action taken by PERKESO's Anti-Fraud Division, approximately RM5.33mil was saved. If these measures had not been taken, losses could have reached about RM9mil,” he said during a joint press conference with the MACC here on Thursday (June 18).
Mohammed Azman said RM1.26mil had been recovered as of Wednesday (June 17) following enforcement action taken against the employers involved.
He said the Daya Kerjaya programme was introduced to help vulnerable groups secure employment, including disabled people, parolees and women seeking to return to the workforce.
According to him, the companies submitting claims appeared to be compliant on the surface as they were registered with the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) and made PERKESO contributions as required.
“However, what we discovered was that once the six-month period ended, the workers were immediately terminated. After detecting this pattern, we conducted field investigations with the assistance of whistleblowers,” he said.
Mohammed Azman said the investigation took about eight months before the complete findings were handed over to the MACC.
He added that PERKESO would implement improvements recommended by the MACC to close any gaps that could be exploited by irresponsible parties.
“This is not the first time we have worked with the MACC. Previously, we carried out Ops Hire and Ops Tunjang involving fraudulent PERKESO claims, and this cooperation will continue,” he said.
The Daya Kerjaya 2.0 programme provides a government hiring incentive of RM1,500 per month for up to six months for each worker hired by private sector employers and government-linked companies (GLCs). The programme targets disabled people, parolees and senior citizens aged above 60.
