KOTA KINABALU: Keningau MP Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan was denied entry into Sarawak for the second time, prompting the Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku (STAR) President to question why the Sarawak chief minister is abusing his immigration powers.
In a statement here today, Jeffrey said the decision to deny him entry into Sarawak only happened under the current Sarawak chief minister’s administration.
“I have never had this problem under previous Sarawak chief ministers namely Tun Taib Mahmud and the late Tan Sri Adenan Satem.
“As such, I am speaking not only on my behalf but also others, including Sarawakians who are now wondering if there is anything wrong with Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg’s government.”
“Is he afraid of something that he now must resort to abusing his immigration powers for no apparent reason?” he questioned.
The Tambunan assemblyman was due to chair a follow-up Dayak International Organisation (DIO) meeting in Kuching this afternoon and to speak at a forum organised by Sarawak For Change (S4C) tomorrow afternoon.
He has applied for a special entry just to attend these activities but received a negative reply instead.
Jeffrey said while he respects the state government immigration powers, he regrets that it is done tom him especially as he has been at the forefront of fighting for Sabah and Sarawak rights in Malaysia even before Abang Johari became Sarawak Chief Minister.
“I hope the Sarawak government will reconsider and allow me, an elected Malaysian leader and a fellow Dayak into the state for legitimate activities,” he said.
On another note, Jeffrey said the Sabah government also has similar immigration powers but time and again, it has failed to use this power to curb illegal immigrants from entering Sabah.
Sabah and Sarawak have special immigration powers as agreed in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).
It means the state governments have the power to stop any individuals who were not born in respective states from entering.
However, both state governments have been accused of abusing this power especially when political figures who are not aligned to the respective state governments’ political ideology would be routinely barred from entering the states.-pr/BNN
