INFORMANTS are aiding intruders and illegal immigrants entering Sabah despite the presence of the Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCom), Home Affairs Minister Hamzah Zainudin told senators today.

“There are so many informants in our country, enabling intruders to know when and how to get in.

“The informants provide information on ESSCom’s assets to the skippers who ferry illegal immigrants, which makes it hard to control and track their movement in Sabah waters, Hamzah said in the Dewan Negara, adding that Sabahans have had close-knit ties with people from the Philippines and Indonesia for a long time, which further complicates ESSCom’s work.

The home minister was responding to a question from United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (Upko) deputy president, Senator Donald Peter Mojuntin, who asked about the capabilities of ESScom.

“I found out that ESSCom boats can only be used in offshore areas. This makes it very difficult for ESSCom officers to monitor the island areas in shallower water, which criminals and illegal immigrants use as their routes.

“My question is whether the government plans to supply light speedboats for the shallow waters and to what extent is the implementation to ban pump boats in the ESSzone (Eastern Sabah Security Zone) area,” Donald said.

Hamzah said it is true that ESScom only operated limited assets, adding that the use of newer technology will be applied for boats and on coastal areas to detect intrusions more swiftly.

Sabah’s east coast is peppered with 307 islands, which make it vulnerable to illegal entry and kidnappings. The islands provide excellent hiding places for people trying to evade the authorities.

Hamzah said such geographical factors posed difficulties for ESSCom.

“It is close to the islands in the Southern Philippines and Indonesia. This has allowed various threats in terms of cross-border crime, including intrusions for ‘kidnapping-for-ransom’.

“Second, the area off the east coast of Sabah, starting from Kudat district to Tawau is 2,344km, which is a very broad area,” he added. – December 21, 2020.