SpotLight: Challenging task faced in deporting foreigners

NST Online, 2008/08/14

Foreigners await their turn to be processed after a raid in Keningau.

KENINGAU: The ongoing exercise to rid the state of illegal immigrants began in the interior of Sabah with a lot of legwork for the authorities.

Over 1,000 foreigners were rounded up for screening from several locations yesterday and the authorities believe they have barely scratched the surface of the problem.

Led by district police chief DSP Zahari Mohamad, the swoop, involving some 500 policemen, started about 8am in the district which covers about 38,000ha.

With timber and agriculture as the main economic activities for the district, the operation focused on the large foreign workforce in sawmills and plantations.

In the swoop, suspected illegal immigrants were roped in and referred to the Immigration and National Registration departments at the community centre here.
An Immigration department officer at the centre said most employers keep the documents of their foreign workers hence the screening process at the centre and not from where they were hauled up.

"We cannot afford to trust the word of the employers as most of the time there are bound to be a few illegal immigrants within their premises," added the officer.

Minibus driver John Anting said he saw more than 20 people, some without their shirts, fleeing as he drove near a sawmill in Biah about 9am.

"I knew the operation was on when I saw them running into the jungle," he said, when he stopped for refreshments at a roadside stall near the sawmill.

Businessman Terrence Maraat said it would not be an easy task for the authorities because of the vastness of the district.

"In the interior, we have the main district Keningau and sub-districts of Sook and Nabawan. This is a big area but I am sure the authorities have their plan and to me it's about time.

"It's time we set our priorities right and provide our people with the job opportunities instead of taking advantage of the foreigners who are willing to work for meagre salaries."

The federal-initiated operation, dubbed Ops Bersepadu, began in Kota Kinabalu and its neighbouring district of Penampang a week ago with the authorities targeting squatter colonies and houses rented out by people.

A budget of RM50 million had been allocated for the exercise which followed calls from political parties for drastic action to curb the large presence of illegal immigrants in the state.

In June, a special federal cabinet committee headed by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak decided on the operation and approved the funding for it. -- By Roy Goh