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KUCHING, June 30: Tourism, Arts, and Culture Minister (Motac) Dato Sri Tiong King Sing has alleged that blackmail and extortion by immigration officers have been rampant at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).
Tiong, who is Bintulu MP, said he was forced to expose this following false accusations hurled against him that he had created a commotion at KLIA and abused his authority as a minister to release a foreign tourist detained by immigration authorities.
He said the most recent case was not an isolated one, as he had dealt with several cases already. Before the spread of the most recent news against him, he hoped to settle it through a more practical channel and platform. Â
Following the smearing campaign online, he decided to do a media exposé.
“I was even told that there are immigration officers who ask for money to be given if detained foreign tourists want to be released.Â
“Some are asking for up to RM3,000 to be released from detention, including a flight ticket back to their home country.Â
“An additional RM3,000 is requested if you want to return to your home country immediately through a ‘special route’, while RM12,000 is for the cost of processing a visa,” Tiong claimed in a press statement today.
He said whatever information he has collected so far will be handed over to the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) so that an investigation can be carried out to restore the image of Malaysia, especially at the entrance gateway.
The Dudong assemblyman will also raise the matter to the Cabinet, including the proposal to abolish the agent appointed to handle foreign tourists who are refused entry.
He said the practice of having a third party managing flight tickets for immigration detainees to return to their home country should be abolished and be handled by airlines to prevent chances of extortion.
“Motac and I will continue to work together with the Prime Minister to combat corruption and abuse of power in this country, regardless of the challenges ahead,” said Tiong.
It is reported that a minister broke into the international arrival hall of KLIA without an authorisation pass to free a Chinese national woman who was denied entry and detained by Malaysia Immigration Department yesterday.
The report claimed that when he was stopped, he abused his ministerial powers, including telling off the KLIA Relief Police and immigration officers.
The report said the incident has been viral online and this was the third time the minister had taken such actions involving visitors who were denied entry and detained by the Immigration Department. — DayakDaily
