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Long wait for firm action on ‘illegals’ in Sabah

I hail the action by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) for detaining the four immigration officers in Lahad Datu suspected of granting dubious long-term social visits to Pakistanis in Sabah.  

This is what genuine Sabahans have been waiting for all these years; a firm act from the government in ensuring that the sovereignty of the Sabah remained intact by flushing out any foreigners who entered the state by fraudulent and unlawful means.

However, what attracted my attention is not the detention itself but the length of time enjoyed by these foreigners to roam freely in our state and to channel our money out to their country of origin before being detained by the government .

In 2011, a group of youths from Penampang who called themselves the Penampang Youth Movement For Change had highlighted in the press the need by the government to inspect foreign traders operating sundry shops in the district, whether they have flaunted the immigration law or not.

The sharp observation by these youths worth is applause since these foreign traders , comprising mostly of Pakistani nationals, are not supposed to work in these shops if they do not have valid visas or to operate it if the trading licence belongs to some other nominee.

But how long will it take before the government will really take action against the hundred thousands of foreigners in the state who may have flaunted our immigration law? Needless to say, thousands of frustrated Sabahans are talking about this issue everyday on Facebook!

It is my view that I welcome foreign traders, expatriates or investors into Sabah who will be able to contribute in terms of infrastructures/utilities/human capital development, business opportunity to the local populace or even world-class education. This includes the blue collared foreign workers with visas since they equally contribute to the state’s economic growth.

However, when these foreigners entered the state illegally, what does Sabah gain from them? One thing for sure, since there are hundred of thousands of them, and the government spends millions of ringgit when they equally utilise the subsidised goods and the government’s hospitals/primary schools which in the first place, were meant for the genuine Sabahans.

These are the facts which were disclosed during the royal commission of inquiry (RCI) which makes it all more urgent for the federal and state government to overcome the illegal immigrants menace in the state since they are depriving all the opportunities and privileges we Sabahans are supposedly have in order for us to develop, progress and contribute back to our land!

With our vast land and rich resources, I envision of Sabah as a strong economy emulating America or Singapore, whereby our state will be seeing a huge leap in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) increment, becoming the producer of first class human capital and the interiors enjoying economic progress.

And to do that, we need to open up our market but at the same time, we also need to be very strict with our immigration law and protectionism especially when we talk about cross-border migration or trade.

I am ever conscious that our government enforcement officers especially those from the People’s Voluntary Corps (Rela), Immigration/Customs Department, police and Civil Defence Department (JPAM) are doing the best they can in overcoming this illegal immigrants menace and I believe many, if not all, of the officers within these agencies could not wait to lay their hands over these immigration law-breakers.

‘These officers really do love Sabah’

The very fact that these enforcement officers are detaining large numbers of illegal immigrants during raids shows that these officers really do love Sabah and are committed to weeding out the illegal immigrants, despite there may exist some ‘black sheeps’ such as the four detained by MACC.  

Surely, if they have no love for Sabah or commitment at all, they would do it half-heartedly as they would not want to risk their lives.

However, being part of the executive branch that are subject to any command given out by a minister who may or may not understand the severity of our problem, it dawns on me that effective flushing out of these illegal immigrants in Sabah by these committed officers from the various departments or agency may take a longer time than we expected.

And perhaps it is high time that a special agency or commission which is answerable directly to the Parliament should be establish to overcome the illegal immigrants problem in Sabah which shall be spearheaded by all the committed officers from Rela, Immigration/Customs departments, police and JPAM.

Mirroring the MACC, this commission shall have all the powers to capture, detain, charge and deport any illegal immigrant captured by them without having to wait for anyone including the minister or political leaders or parties to give them the instruction.

While we need to free Sabah from the illegal immigrants, we also need to ensure that our enforcement departments are from any corrupt officials.   


DARELL LEIKING is Member of Parliament for Penampang.

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