Taken from Daily Express
Kota Kinabalu: United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun and Murut Organisation (Upko) wants the enforcement authorities to get tougher with illegal immigrants who sneak back as well as the local people harbouring them in Sabah.
Its Secretary-General Datuk Wilfred Madius Tangau said since the country has a law providing for illegal immigrants and locals who harbour them to be caned, this should be made full use of as a deterrent.
"Those illegal immigrants who come back to Sabah, after they were deported to their respective country of origin, and still without a valid travel pass should be caned double or triple the actual number, according to how many times he or she repeatedly came back illegally to Sabah," he said.
The same goes to employers or land and house owners found to be harbouring illegal immigrants, he added.
"Because this (illegal immigrant problem) is a serious problem. We need to be very serious if we want to deal with it effectively," said Madius, adding that foreigners will otherwise have an impression that Malaysia's enforcement authorities are 'weak' or 'so easy'.
Madius said this in response to Deputy Director of National Security Council in Sabah Major Mohd Rizam Ayob saying that Sabahans are also largely to blame for the huge presence of illegal immigrants in Sabah.
He also said repatriation exercises are conducted regularly but that most would be back in two weeks.
Madius said the Immigration Department should also practise what their counterparts are doing in the Philippines that is to have the palm print, instead of just thumb print, of every visiting foreigner.
"The department should also do the same, to have the record of every foreigner who had been arrested and deported to their respective country of originÉto enable them to know how many times the deportee comes back to Malaysia and also to facilitate severe punishment for these repeat offenders," he said.
Madius said the party also does not understand why the authorities did not seriously go after and bring to court those employing or harbouring the illegal immigrants.
"It seems to me the illegal immigrants are telling where they had worked before or where they had stayed before but why didn't the enforcement authorities concerned not go there and charge those employers or land owners or house owners?" he asked.