By Malcolm Lau
KUCHING, Dec 27: The idea of implementing a single agency to oversee national security was commendable, but a lot of powers under laws and expertise were required to do so.
Santubong MP Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jafar said that a thorough study was needed to enable the government to come up with the framework of law, personnel training and expertise to assure the security of Malaysia’s borderlands.
“The idea of a single border security is good, but the agency and its staff must also be required to be given power under the law and the expertise needed to enforce a single law with respect to customs, immigration, quarantine, drugs, wildlife, biodiversity and others,” Wan Junaidi said at a Radio Emergency Drone Squads (REDS) press conference at Santubong Service Centre on Friday morning.
Wan Junaidi was commenting on Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s announcement today that the federal government was going to set up a sole agency to overlook border security, in place of the 28 bodies, associations and companies currently managing national borders.
“But I am quite glad that Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin mentioned of the study to be made between six months to one year, learning from other countries’ experiences, studying their laws and comparing our problems and experiences.
“Because countries like Singapore, the USA, Australia, might not have what Malaysia has, for example, wildlife, biodiversity, bio-safety; our problems are not their problems. They are not mega-diverse countries, and neither are they the transit centres for smuggling wildlife and biodiversity, like Malaysia,” he added.
He pointed out that the single agency method must not be solely evaluated from an economic standpoint in its efforts to fulfil the government’s manifesto but must be able to carry out border security more efficiently and effectively.
“The government should not see the present security arrangement through cost-cutting and human resource-saving benefits alone,” Wan Junaidi said. —DayakDaily
