Strategy framework on Sabah, Sarawak security
New approaches and strategies are constantly being taken to strengthen border security, particularly in Sabah and Sarawak, to combat cross-border crime, Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said.
The Kampung Tanduo incursion and kidnapping incident in Lahad Datu, Sabah, in February 2013 is solid proof that security threats in these areas are real.
He said the ministry has submitted several suggestions to the Cabinet as to how security assets, especially in Sabah, can be fortified.
“The coastal areas (of Sabah and Sarawak) are long and wide, and security-wise, it can be quite a logistical nightmare.
“We have put forward our ideas to the government to ensure Sabah and Sarawak remain safe from border incursions,” he said in an interview recently with the media in conjunction with the Pakatan Harapan administration’s one-year anniversary.
Muhyiddin said the establishment of the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSZone) and Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCom) has proven to be effective security measures in protecting the sovereignty of the state.
“What matters are that the decisions taken by the (Home) Ministry must always result in the people feeling safe,” he said.
On another matter, Muhyiddin said the Home Ministry was currently studying the best methods on how to carry out rehabilitation and treatment for drug addicts out of prison.
“This approach has the potential to reduce prison overcrowding. Currently, there are 60,000 inmates but our prisons can only accommodate 55,000.
“What we can see is that many of our prison inmates are drug abuse detainees,” Muhyiddin said.
Meanwhile, on challenges leading the ministry, Muhyiddin said the riot at the Seafield Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Subang Jaya on Nov 26 was an example of how sensitive cases had to be treaded and dealt with in the best possible way.
He said the death of firefighter Muhammad Adib Mohd Kassim in the riot was manipulated by certain parties to accuse the government of withholding the truth from the public.
“But it is the government that held an inquest (to determine the cause of Adib’s death) and this proves the government has nothing to hide from the public. We have been very transparent and fair in this matter,” he said.
In line with the New Malaysia spirit that upholds integrity and transparency, Muhyiddin said the government has also set up of the Royal Commission of Inquiry to probe the 2015 discovery of temporary campsites and graves in Wang Kelian in Perlis.
The seven-member commission is headed by former Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria.
The inquest is expected to take some six months to complete and its findings will be presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. – Bernama