Too late to recall, reissue MyKads
Published on: Saturday, February 24, 2018
Kota Kinabalu: Opposition Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (Star) has rubbished Usno Baru's claim that there is no justification to recall and reissue MyKads issued in Sabah in the absence of any evidence of their illegal issuance or misuse by pointing to several incidents that shocked the nation recently."There have been too many cases involving ICs issued in Sabah. One glaring incident involved the murder of a Malay lady bank officer by the bank's security personnel in Kuala Lumpur. "Was it a fake or genuine IC? What about the infamous Tanduo intruders who were shot dead and buried at various places in Sabah according to the addresses in their ICs?
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"How could the dead Tanduo intruders be holders of Malaysian ICs?" asked its Sec-Gen Guandee Kohoi. He also recalled a case involving a college trained teacher found using the IC of a dead person besides many instances of security guards in peninsula found to be foreigners holding Sabah MyKads."These are only a tip of the iceberg. Now, what have the authorities done to address such issues? "These did not just happen yesterday. A concerned government should have taken bold steps to solve this.
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Why only now?" Guandee asked further.However, Star said the call by Upko and PBS is "a bit too late" as the general election is around the corner.
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Star Information Chief Jeffrey Kumin claimed that both parties know fully well that the exercise is nearly impossible to do. "Why now when the election is around the corner? "There's no use making waves about the fake IC or anything related to illegal immigrants in Sabah because this matter should have been solved long ago since they are the government," he said.He also claimed that the order for random identity card scanning at airports in Sabah by the Deputy Prime Minister Dato Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi only shows that the government has not been serious in solving the illegal immigrant issue in Sabah. He said a Star/Gabungan Sabah government will introduce Sabah's own identity card to citizens. Fellow opposition, Parti Warisan, has insisted that the State Government issue a 'Sabah IC' to weed out IS militancy and Projek IC in the state."It will be issued only to genuine Sabahans," said Jeffrey.Earlier, Upko and PBS both said there was need to recall and reissue new MyKads in the wake of revelation by Zahid that terrorists were hoping to obtain these documents in Sabah and use it for activities in the peninsula.However, Kusugan Ali, the supposedly protem deputy president of Usno Baru, opposed the recalling of MyKads, claiming there was no evidence of the document being illegally issued.Kusugan called on the Federal Government not to heed the calls by Upko. He also warned the parties not to "bark" about the MyKad issue as it would hurt the feelings of other races, especially the Suluks in Sabah many of whom he said are "VVIPs in the Sabah government."Upko pledged to fight for reissuance, insisting that it is the only solution to the seemingly perennial foreign illegal immigrant issue in the state."Our stand, presented during the Royal Commission of Inquiry on illegal immigrants, was for the authorities to recall the cards, undergo scrutiny and reissue them only to real Malaysians. "We stand by with our resolution," said party Sec-Gen. Datuk Donald Mojuntin. He stressed any other measures would be lacking in as far as the document is concerned."Upko had said it before, and we are saying it again: It is doable because we have changed our ICs many times. It may take some time in some areas, but the end result will be the right outcome for all."Mojuntin pointed out, the RCI findings as well as the many arrests of foreigners with suspicious personal documents "are enough proof that foreigners are getting their documents through illegal means.""To be fair, the authorities had embarked on several actions to weed out illegal immigrants, which is why their presence is now less felt especially in major towns. But, the recalling of ICs still is the most comprehensive of solution. Upko will fight for such," he stressed.After going through nine months of hearing and 211 witnesses, RCI released a 366-page report. In the report several statements and recommendations were made including the existence of Projek IC and involvement of corrupt officials.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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