KOTA KINABALU: The federal government, particularly the Attorney-General’s Chambers, has been asked to clarify in detail the actual jurisdiction of the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) particularly in terms of security in the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (Esszone).
Sabah social activist, Patrick Sindu has suggested that the Attorney-General immediately study the possibility of giving appropriate additional power to Esscom Director-General Mohammad Mentek to strengthen control and monitoring on security on Esszone.
“This is because from the public perception, Esscom has a wide scope of command especially in the Esszone area, but based on media reports, Esscom is said only to have the power to coordinate operations of the various security and defence agencies including the Malaysian Armed Forces, the Royal Malaysia Police (RMP) and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) in maintaining public security in the Esszone,” he said in a statement here yesterday.
He cited the criminal case on the abduction and murder of a Taiwan national on Pom-Pom Island recently where the reaction of the people in Sabah, including in the social website, Facebook, was to point their fingers at Esscom and Mohammad.
“They gave the picture as though Esscom has a wide power of command, and this perception may not be accurate.
“That’s why we urge the Attorney-General to immediately detail the jurisdiction of the Esscom, thus removing this confusion,” he said.
Esscom was set up by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak during his visit to Lahad Datu on March 7 last year to protect the sovereignty and security of the east coast of the state following the intrusion by a group of Sulu terrorists into Kampung Tanduo in February last year.
Esscom is the enforcement agency in Esszone which covers 10 districts namely Kudat, Kota Marudu, Pitas, Beluran, Kinabatangan, Sandakan, Lahad Datu, Kunak, Tawau and Semporna.
-Bernama
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