(The Star) - A former chief minister has rubbished claims of an organised effort to issue Malaysian identification documents to immigrants in Sabah under an alleged operation called “Projek IC”.
Describing such claims as false,Tan Sri Harris Salleh (pic) told the Royal Commission of Inquiry on Sabah’s immigrant problem that he had no authority to order Malaysian agencies to give out identification documents when he was chief minister between 1976 and 1985.
He was being questioned by conducting officer Munoj Kurup about such claims.
Harris said he had never heard of Projek IC and that the Federal Government was the sole authority for the issuance of identity cards and other documents.
He said he did not bother reading any publications about such claims as “I can’t be bothered to read cerita palsu (false stories)”.
Harris said that Federal agencies may have tried to hasten the processing of documents for immigrants such as the IMM13 for those granted refugee status due to the large numbers of applicants.
He said that as far as he was aware, those holding the IMM13 documents would eventually be eligible to apply for permanent resident status in the country and could subsequently seek Malaysian citizenship.
To a question by Manoj, Harris said “the Federal Government never reported to the state” the number of immigrants who were given citizenship while he was chief minister.
He said his Parti Berjaya-led state government was pressed to resolve the refugee problem when it came to power in 1976 as many of them had set up squatter settlements along Kota Kinabalu’s seafront causing an eyesore.
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