Clear SOP on shoot on sight needed - Najib

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said security forces should have a clear Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) in place before they are allowed to shoot on sight intruders in Sabah waters.

He said this is to avoid untoward incidents involving the lives of innocent people.

“I agree that a stricter measure needs to be taken, but a clear SOP is needed to avoid untoward incidents from happening as there might be differences in interpretations,” he said at a press conference at Seri Perdana today.

He said the authorities must come up with the SOP and it has to be approved by the government.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had on Monday said the power to shoot on sight is given to authorities to stop intruders from entering the Malaysian waters.

Commenting on Navy chief Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Jaafar’s request to shoot intruders who entered Sabah waters, Ahmad Zahid had said that such shootings are justified.

Abdul Aziz had requested for the shoot on sight orders following the recent incident in Pulau Mabul, Semporna, Sabah where intruders had killed a marine policeman and kidnapped another.

However, Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail had rejected the suggestion, saying that Malaysia is not a military state.