The Sabah Immigration Department has denied detaining a Sarawak minister at the state capital’s airport, calling the entire episode a mere “misunderstanding”.
Local paper Borneo Post reported Noor Alam Khan Abdul Wahid Khan, the department’s director as saying yesterday that the minister was only subjected to a routine screening of passengers at airports.
He said the “misunderstanding” could have been due to the special pass that the state minister had showed at the counter.
“It was a misunderstanding as the immigration officer on duty was just conducting a documentation screening as he would other passengers’ identification cards and passports,” Noor Alam told the Borneo Post.
On Sunday, Sarawak’s Land Development Minister Tan Sri Dr James Masing was reportedly stopped at Sabah’s Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) at 6pm as the immigration department believed him to be an imposter posing as a minister using a false pass.
When the immigration officer saw the special pass usually used by ministers and elected representatives, he followed the standard procedure of asking to view Masing’s identification card to verify his identity, Noor Alam said.
“Although the minister did present his ‘Pengenalan Istimewa’ (Special Identification) document, it was not immediately explanatory and not all our officers are used to seeing such documents.
“Hence, our officer asked him (Masing) to present his identification card,” he said.
Noor Alam clarified that Masing was not detained by the department, pointing out that he was not put in any special room while the whole episode happened at the airport’s immigration counter.
He also corrected reports that Masing was stopped when entering Sabah, saying instead that the Sarawak politician was flying out of the state then, Borneo Post reported.
On Monday, Borneo Post reported that Masing found it difficult to get immigration officers to believe that he was an actual minister and had to resort to using his identity card as proof.
Masing suggested that the misunderstanding arose because he was casually dressed in “jeans” and a t-shirt, describing the incident as “embarrassing”.
Malaysia’s immigration department was recently placed under international scrutiny after two Iranian nationals managed to board the missing Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH370 using stolen passports.
Airport operator Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) have tightened security checks especially for international flights following the Beijing-bound MH370’s disappearance, local daily The Star reported on Monday.
MAS has also reportedly implemented new security measures during flights since the MH370 disappeared on March 8.
According to The Star, Malaysia Airlines (MAS) issued a new circular that make it compulsory for a flight attendant to be in the cockpit when either the pilot or co-pilot steps out for a break; Another flight attendant is to stand guard outside the door to prevent passengers from gaining access to the cockpit.
Malay Mail
Hehehe... got a taste of the medicine..
ReplyDeletesop!!!
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