I refer to A Very Upset Sabahan's suggestion to position US Special Forces in Sabah.

Special forces of any country are designed for special operations, like covert deep penetration of enemy territory to carry out close surveillance of the enemy or even attack them, shock operations requiring speed and surprise tactics, or those permitting only small bands of highly skilled specialists to conduct highly dangerous missions in enemy dominated areas that would normally be difficult to achieve by conventional forces, etc.

The problem Very Upset Sabahan mentioned would be best tackled by the navy or coastal police. Intelligence is another important pre-requisite, for the Sabah coastline is long and difficult for the Malaysian navy or police to cover comprehensively.

Good intelligence enables the armed services to be at the correct location at the precise time to deal with intrusion. Intelligence can be achieved through many forms, but generally the idea is to know when the enemy is coming or may be expected to appear.

But why nominate the US Special Forces? For those who know, the US Special Forces is not well thought off compared to other national special forces. Its only strength would be its possession of gadgetry and of course, satellite and electronic intelligence.

In the Sabah region, it is likely that these pirates or raiders may not oblige with electronic communication for the simple reason that these are isolated bands of bandits without the need for sophisticated communication.

Their vessels would probably be the same as thousands of other vessels in the local seas, so satellite surveillance may not harness the desired imagery of the raiders' intentions.

Old-fashioned intelligence gathering may be the best option yet. The Malaysian Special Branch did a sterling job during the Konfrontasi of the '60s and continued to serve with distinction until the late '80s. Can it rise to the occasion again?

Without the useful employment of their special gadgets, the US Special Forces may not be the solution. Then, what is there they can achieve that our own military or police can't?

There is this perpetuated Hollywood myth derived from movies like Rambo, GI Jane, and S.E.A.L etc. that may have brainwashed the layperson into believing these American special force personnel are superhuman.

Those who have been or are in the know think otherwise. Believe me, the US Special Forces minus their exotic gadgetry are very far down the list of highly regarded special forces.

Additionally, the political fallout from having US service personnel here in Sabah is completely unthinkable. They would then become the problem rather than the solution. I need not take this any further.

Instead, the government must address the issue of intrusion by such raiders into Sabah by strengthening the presence of the Royal Malaysian Navy and the coastal police, backed by air surveillance and as I mentioned, strong and satisfactory intelligence.