Op finds over 600,000 foreigners in Sabah

2009/10/18

KOTA KINABALU, Sun: A total of 610,614 foreigners have been detected so far in operations in the west coast and east coast of Sabah, Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said.

He said the number consisted of 5,643 illegal immigrants identified under the first phase of Operasi Bersepadu, 4,425 illegal immigrants identified under the second phase of the same operations, 312,837 under the registration of undocumented workers and their dependents, 57,197 refugees and 230,000 foreign workers with valid permits.

He said that the most significant success of the Operasi Bersepadu was the registration of 312,837 undocumented immigrant workers and their dependents.

"Through the programme, employers were told to obtain proper documentations for their workers," he said after visiting the marine police station here today.

He said that the approach was taken to protect the interest of sectors in Sabah, especially the plantation sector.

"If we take a drastic action and deport them, the sectors concerned will immediately be affected. At the same time, the registration would also allow the authorities to collect data to facilitate monitoring from time to time," he said.

Hishammuddin said the ministry had given employers a second chance to register their workers.

"The registration period was to expire on May 31 this year but has been extended to Oct 31 this year.

"At the same time, between July 1 this year and Oct 31 this year, the Home Ministry is giving a discount of 50 per cent in the levy for each of the foreign worker," he said.

He added that so far, of the 317,837 undocumented immigrant workers and their dependents, only 192,723 of them had been registered legally as workers. - Bernama