Integrated border control operations in north of Peninsula from Jan 2021 - Ismail Sabri

BUKIT KAYU HITAM: Border control operations in the northern part of the Peninsula will be implemented in an integrated manner, including in terms of area patrols, by all relevant security agencies, beginning in January.

Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the move, which involved three agencies, namely the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF), the police and the Malaysian Border Security Agency (Aksem), was among the enhancements to increase border control effectiveness.

"Currently, in terms of control, we divide the areas, for example, the area here is taken care of by the MAF under 'Op Pagar 2' and in other areas, it is taken care of by the police (under the General Operations Force).

"Beginning next year, we will start the 'Op Benteng' as implemented in other areas, especially in marine areas such as the west coast of the Peninsula and Sabah and Sarawak, which is an integrated operation," he said in a press conference here today.

He said the move would enable security forces patrolling together to detain intruders in accordance with the provisions of the law, under the jurisdiction of the relevant agencies.

"In terms of (law enforcement) power, the MAF has no power to arrest, so when there is an intrusion, the police will be called to assist in terms of arrests, the MAF can only act against those who are considered enemies of the country.

"So in the situation where illegal immigrants and smugglers enter our country, they are not considered enemies of the country even though the MAF controls the border, so the police or Aksem can take action (in those instances)," he said.

Apart from that, Ismail Sabri said the government would build two coordinated control posts in Padang Terap, which also involved cooperation with security agencies in neighbouring countries to strengthen border control in the area.

He said assets such as motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and drones would also be increased beginning January, and his ministry would propose to the National Security Council to provide allocations to install closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras as well as build radars at the country's borders.

"Because I have been made to understand that they (intruders) know the timing of our border control patrols, so with the use of drones and CCTVs as well as the radars, we can detect all movements at the border," he said.

Earlier, Ismail Sabri paid a working visit to the Army deployment and border control operations area here.

-- BERNAMA