I express my concern over the possibility of East Sabah Security Zone (ESSZone) become the first “Security Area” under the controversial newly passed National Security Council (NSC) Bill.
The NSC Bill gives the prime minister absolute power to declare any place as Security Area, and empower authorities, such as the army and the police, to arrest anyone without a warrant.
Everybody knows the east coast of Sabah is facing security threat by invasion of Sulu armed group and those cross border criminals. That’s why we have gazetted the area as ESSZone and ESSCom is formed to handle the issues here. With the newly passed NSC Bill, would the ESSZone become the first Security Area? What kind of guarantee we have that the bill is not being abused for political reason?
The NSC Bill, is a blow to equal partnership spirit among Sabah, Sarawak and Malaya to form Malaysia.
The state rights are marginalized as the bill was passed without any consultation with any state government, be it BN state or Opposition state. There is no Borneo states representative in the National Security Council (NSC). It means that we have no say in the decision making.
The NSC consists of key members of the executive with the prime minister as chairman. Other members are the deputy prime minister, defence minister, home minister, multimedia and communications minister, the government’s chief secretary, the chief of the defence forces and the inspector-general of police.
According to the Bill, the NSC’s jurisdiction takes effect once the prime minister designates a location as a “security area” — a status that is valid for six months at a time, subject to renewal by the prime minister.
Once the NSC takes over control of a security area, security forces will have the right to search or arrest without warrant any individual “found committing, alleged to have committed, or reasonably suspected of having committed any offence under written laws in the security area”.
The Bill also seeks to empower security forces to arrest without warrant and take action against those who do not abide by an evacuation order from a security area, and also carry out searches of any vehicle or premise within the security area without a warrant.