KUCHING: More sniffer dogs are needed to combat the smuggling of drugs into the country, said Drug Prevention Association of Malaysia (Pemadam) Sarawak branch chairman Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.

He said that currently there were too few canines trained for that purpose and urged the federal government to set an allocation to buy and train more dogs to be placed at entry points into the country.

"We have many airports, ports, Immigration posts and parcel offices where drugs are smuggled in but we do not have sniffer dogs to be deployed at these places," he told a press conference after chairing the Sarawak Pemadam meeting today.

Abdul Karim, who is also Sarawak Youth and Sports Minister, said that since there was no tracking device available thus far for drug detection, only dogs could be trained to do so.

He added that the public was concerned with the increase in the number of drug abuse and smuggling cases in the country, including in Sarawak, where it has now spread to villages, homes and farming areas in the interior.

"Cases of drug abuse and trafficking occur daily everywhere and also involve syndicates hiring youths. If this is not curbed immediately, it could become more serious and difficult to tackle," he said.

Meanwhile, he said the Pemadam meeting today also discussed the need to build a rehabilitation centre for women drug offenders in Sarawak as they are currently sent to a centre in Bachok, Kelantan.

-- BERNAMA