Jeffrey: Why no action on the Immigration staff?
Published on: Tuesday, March 03, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: The State Government must recall and revoke the visit passes of all Pakistanis in Sabah with immediate effect, said Star Sabah Chief, Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan.He said it was reported that eight immigration officers were arrested but it appeared that no action has been taken against these errant officers. "It will be a grave injustice to Sabah and Sabahans if they, especially officers from Malaya, are not charged," he said.
ADVERTISEMENT
"Some sources seem to indicate that the Pakistani social passes were the tip of a scandal waiting to be exposed which also involves another group of Indian Muslims with links to politicians and a local curry house and the mis-use of a Sabah leader's name."Towards this end, Dr Jeffrey said the Technical Committee of Foreign Migrant Management under Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan should immediately investigate the matter and not just rely on the Immigration Department. The integrity of the Immigration Department is suspect and it is questionable whether they will punish the crooks within, he said."The issue is not just punishing the Pakistanis and the culprits involved but to go after the syndicates, links and putting in systems that will prevent future recurrences. That duty must fall on the Sabah government," he said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Prior to this, Dr Jeffrey said there have been countless complaints of the presence of numerous Pakistanis who do not speak any local language at all running all over Sabah. "There are also many complaints of Pakistanis running retail outlets even in remote interior villages.
ADVERTISEMENT
"It may now be appropriate to make a swoop on all Pakistanis in Sabah and verify the authenticity of their passes. "Jail sentences of three months seem inadequate to the seriousness of the damage and the security threats to Sabah and Sabahans," he said.Dr Jeffrey said that in Indonesia, the government bombed to smithereens the fishing vessels of foreign fishermen that encroached into Indonesian waters for fishing sending out a message for future offenders to avoid Indonesian waters."There is no reason to grant special privileges to Pakistanis with extended social passes when visitors from Asean nations are only allowed 30 days in Sabah and 90 days for West Malaysians."The Sabah government needs to set up a dedicated immigration agency to look into applications and approvals for social passes. Only with this own agency can the Sabah government monitor the foreign visitors that have landed in Sabah and those who are permitted for extended stays," he said.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
Daily Express Malaysia
