Ministry denies claims on issuance of ICs to illegals

KOTA KINABALU: The Home Ministry has refuted allegations that it distributed forms for the issuance of identity cards and the granting of citizenship for illegal immigrants in Sabah.

Its deputy minister, Datuk Mohd Azis Jamman, said the claim was made to tarnish the reputation of Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) and leaders in the state.

“The forms, which were meant to gather information from immigrants, were issued by other parties, (which received no approval from me as) deputy home minister.

“I have instructed the police to investigate the case and we will arrest those who are (responsible for making the allegations),” he said, adding that the opposition had been claiming that Warisan was a “breeder” of illegal immigrants.

Azis said this after the end of Op Mega by the Immigration Department yesterday.

In the operation, involving 80 personnel here, 58 Filipinos without valid identity documents were nabbed.

On another matter, Azis said he hoped the Federal Government would consider increasing the allocations for the Eastern Sabah Security Command in the 2019 Budget.

He said Sabah waters were sizable, and it was not easy for security personnel to monitor the area.

“I hope that the government will look into this. We should not compromise on security, as (an incident) could happen at any time.”