Police want closer monitoring of foreign students

KUALA LUMPUR: The police want the Ministry of Higher Education to ensure that private institutions of higher learning and colleges adhere to the Education Malaysia Global Services (EMGS) procedures so as to prevent students from abusing their permits to overstay and to commit crime.

Bukit Aman Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Mohmad Salleh said the police had come across private colleges that did not comply with the procedures, thus providing the opportunity for foreign students, especially from Nigeria, to get involved in drug trafficking.

“There are also students who apply only through private colleges and not the EMGS,” he said in an exclusive interview with Bernama. Mohmad said that though the number of drug traffickers among Nigerians in Malaysia was reducing after the tightening of entry procedures through the implementation of the EMGS in July last year, there were still reports of such cases.

He said findings revealed that many of the Nigerian students involved in drug trafficking did not attend classes and used the student passes to stay in the country and engage in drug trafficking.

Forty-five Nigerian students were arrested this year compared to 63 last year and 33 in 2015.

“From 2012 to September this year, 418 were arrested and drugs valued at over RM54 million were seized,” he said.

Mohmad said private colleges which did not give importance to qualifications and only considered business continuity paved the way for these students to abuse their passes and commit crime.

He said the police always held bilateral meetings with the Nigerian authorities to discuss enforcement and preventive measures to address drug trafficking among these nationals in the country.

“The police will continue to share information with and extend cooperation to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) of NIgeria and other authorities to address the crime,” he said. - Bernama