Daily Express Subscriber
Sign in to your account.

Kota Kinabalu: Parti Warisan Supreme Member Council, Assaffal P. Alian expressed his strong support over the concerns raised by the Kesatuan Pegawai-Pegawai Imigresen Sabah (KPPIS) on the implementation of the Malaysia Border Control and Protection Agency Act 2024 (Act 860), saying the move could affect Sabah’s immigration autonomy.

Assaffal who is also Tungku Assemblyman said the introduction of Act 860 went beyond border security coordination and could be viewed as a gradual shift of powers traditionally held by the Sabah Government.

He said Sabah’s immigration authority was a fundamental condition in the formation of Malaysia under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 and further detailed through the Immigration Act 1963.

“In the original draft of the 1963 legislation recognised Sabah and Sarawak as separate territorial units with full authority over entry control into their respective regions.

“The act to centralise the powers through Act 860 was seen disregarding the spirit of ‘sovereign territory’, promised more than six decades ago,” he said.

Assaffal in a statement on Tuesday also noted that concerns over centralisation were not something new, pointing to prior amendment of the Immigration Act 1959/63 (Section 3(1A) of the Immigration Act 1959/1963) which enabled the Minister of Home Affairs to appoint the Director of Immigration and other senior officers.

He said what we are seeing through Act 860 is a repeat of that process, but this time on a much larger scale through the creation of a full federal agency.

“This trend should not be happening, the Sabah Immigration Department should instead be strengthened as an independent state institution without continued federal executive interference,” he stressed.

Referring to Section 65 of Act 155, Assaffal said the Immigration Director in Sabah was required to comply with directives issued by the State Authority, namely the Chief Minister of Sabah.

However, under the Act 860, the new federal agency headed by a director-general appointed by the federal government who is subject to directives of the Home Ministry, which could technically override the executive authority of the Chief Minister despite provisions requiring compliance with state directives.

Assaffal also referred to the ‘five major loopholes’ highlighted by the KPPIS saying the concerns reflected the need for greater sensitivity towards Sabah’s constitutional position.

Among the issues raised was Section 8 of Act 860, which deals with overlapping functions through administrative mechanisms that could potentially allow federal decisions to be made without proper reference to Sabah’s constitutional rights.

Following this matter, Assaffal questioned how detailed the Sabah Government under Chief Minister, Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor examined the implications of the legislation.

“Is the Chief Minister realised that by letting the federal agency take over the responsibilities linked to Sabah’s immigration powers, he is technically handing over our autonomy key to the federal executive as well as breaching fundamental conditions under the Act 27/1963,” he added.