Pump boats, notorious for their speed and silence, were banned a few years ago after numerous cross-border crimes and kidnappings along Sabah’s East Coast.
Speaking to FMT, National Patriots Association (Patriot) president Mohd Arshad Raji said there had to be good security reasons why the authorities had earlier felt it was right to ban pump boats.
“Sabah’s coastline is very broad and some areas like Pulau Bangi are very close to southern Philippines.”
He was commenting on a Borneo Post report that Chief Minister Mohd Shafie Apdal said the state might lift the ban on pump boats which were used by fishermen.
Shafie said he would discuss the matter with the police.
Arshad, who once served as deputy commander of the Royal Malaysian Army’s 5th Brigade in Sabah, said he did not believe Sabah’s east coast was fully secure yet.
The General knows what he is talking about. The new CM of Sabah should not succumb to lobby groups which may not well serve national interests (security of the state).
Politicians are known to give in to lobby groups for their own political interests whilst soldiers like General Arshad are acutely aware of the probable consequences of such undesirable political cave-ins.
And when the poo hits the fan, we needn't then have to accuse the security authorities of "staging" the ensuing mayhem where our policemen or soldiers have been killed.
Additionally there is an urgent need to bolster the surveillance of Sabah's very porous coastlines, especially on its northern and eastern sectors.
I believe surveillance and ground(sea)-attack drones should be introduced into the military, especially by the RMAF and/or RMN for use along those coastlines on a randomised 24/7 basis.
And we aren't talking about your children's or even commercial-media types of drones.
Surveillance and security technology have progressed at a mind-boggling pace, but the will to secure the Sabah border has been lacking.
ReplyDeleteLook at the narrow Johore Straits. Given the narrow channel , the many dark and lightly populated areas on both sides, it ought to be hot bed of people as well as goods smuggling.
But no such thing exists.
The few people who try to cross illegally either into or out of Singapore almost always get caught.
That is because Singapore maintains a highly effective and efficient surveillance system in the Johore straits - day, night , rain or shine.
stop joking in comparing the sing-malaysia coastline with that of eastern sabah, one with an aggressive and extremely hostile residents
DeleteCheebye kaytee.....what are you going to do?
DeleteDo military uniform la kaytee. Go fight militant
Nothing wrong with benchmarking to a Real-life achievable case.
DeleteOtherwise it is back to the bad old days of half-baked performance and sweeping problems under the carpet.
ESSCOM has spent massive amounts of money over many years with little to show in terms of real improvements.
security is a bit like a safety program for airlines - millions have been spent but nothing to show for it - it means the safety problem has been successful. If you sleep peacefully at night then security exists in the state
DeleteMonsterball has the same thinking about security as those US warhawks: security must be seen working. And hence the US wage war a constant war in Afghanistan & Iraq, bombed Libya & Syria, & posturing with China & DPRK. Ironically, its because of this thinking that we have more conflicts in the current 21st century than all of the 20th.
DeleteThat's ONLY true when the people assigned for the task of security r up to the par of the requirements.
DeleteOtherwise, it would be too late a disaster to salvage if nincompoops & hp6 seat-warmers r been placed in charge!
Just like the current Eastern Sabah Security Command ( Esscom)!
When MH370 disappeared over the South China Sea Malaysians said:
ReplyDelete"Send the Scorpene submarines". The reply was "Scorpene subs not designed for Search and Rescue"
When the search was in the Southern Indian Ocean it was "Scorpene cannot dive so deep"
When China started building naval bases in the South China Sea there was no sight or mention of our Subs to defend our territorial waters or at least to fly our flag
Then when Abu Sayyaf started incursions into Sabah, our subs were deemed "not suitable for the purpose of hunting kidnappers".
So tell me exactly what are the Scorpenes good for? Mat Sabu should pull up the files and tell us what the subs have been doing since we bought them.
What is it good for you ask? For starters, Sing has subs, Indo has subs, Vietnam has subs, China has subs, Pinoy wants to have subs....
DeleteMaybe you can act as sub to sink to the bottom of the ocean
DeleteWhy you jealous that Malaysia has a better sub than Sinkie? Such kiasuness!
DeleteThis Ret'd Brig. Gen studies one of Sun Tzu's principles very well as regards Sabah Eastern Coastlines.
ReplyDeleteHe knows the weaknesses of both itself and the enemy well.
The good old soldiers of the past r all now been replaced by nincompoops, ass-lickers & hp6 fame-seekers!
DeleteBread and Circuses from the Mahathir Regime wakakakaka..
ReplyDeletehttps://www.nst.com.my/news/crime-courts/2018/05/373108/update-official-rm114-million-cash-seized-pavilion-residences-raid
RM 114 Million don't play-play.
UMNO says it's political donation money. Sounds like very familiar tape recording .
Heard it before.
Let's see how they prove it.
Yes, we know that long time ago. Nothing new.
Delete