Former Stampin MP Julian Tan Kok Ping has dismissed the suggestion by Sarawak deputy chief minister James Jemut Masing that Malaysia constructs a border wall with the Indonesian state of Kalimantan in Borneo island.
"This is another great wastage. How thick and how long it's going to be to fence up the whole 1,032km border with Kalimantan?
"A regular mesh fencing won't cut it, not to mention the logistic nightmare of building the wall and the political message we are sending to Indonesia.
"With Indonesia's new capital coming to Kalimantan, we should instead focus on growing our economy to become the upcoming economy powerhouse in the Borneo region," said Tan (above), who served as Stampin MP from 2013 to 2018.
"Sarawakians don't need any more billions ringgit 'castle in the air' project, we need a tangible and practical solution to be a choice destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) and domestic direct investment (DDI).
That is the key to achieve our vision of having a high-income state, added Tan, who is currently working as an aerospace and defence engineer and consultant and doing postgraduate research in drone technology.
He called on Masing to focus on more pressing issues.
“For example, the tourism industry is severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic is one of the biggest contributors to the state's gross domestic product - GDP, which generated RM11.57 billion tourism receipts and accounted for 8.72 percent of the state's GDP in 2019. RM11.57 billion is a lot of money for a state population of 2.81millions.
"According to the Malaysia Budget Hotel Association Sarawak Chapter, over 100 hotels in Sarawak have closed or are in the midst of being wound up, he said.
Earlier this week, Masing said he wants walls or fences to be built at strategic places along the Malaysia-Indonesia border to curb the influx of illegal immigrants into the state.
He said Sarawak had also proposed to build a 1,032km highway along the border from the Biawak Customs, Immigration, Quarantine and Security (CIQS) complex at the south of the state, all the way up to Lawas, its northernmost district, which is estimated to cost RM24 billion.
"On the construction of the walls and fences, Sarawak needs Putrajaya (federal government) to assist. After all, we aren’t only protecting Sarawak’s territory but the country's,” he told Bernama.
He said in his recent visit to Telok Melano, a border point at the south end of Sarawak, he could see a village, a road built by the Indonesian National Army (TNI) and a ‘rat trail’ or illegal border crossing trail near the border.
"There are no less than 70 of such trails from Telok Melano to Lawas. It is a real challenge for us to seal the border with Kalimantan (in Indonesia)," he added.
Tan disagreed, saying rat trails were the least of our problems at this moment.
"It is the people we entrusted and empowered to carry out enforcement duties.
"Last month, it was reported by PDRM that there had been irregularities among members of the General Operations Force (GOF) working at the country's borders and abuse of power among its officers and members.
"The report further states that a GOF member was arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle in three migrants through the Kalimantan-Sarawak border in Tebakang, about 70km from Kuching.
Tan called for effective information sharing across agencies, the setting up of an integrity unit and an invisible border packed with the latest electronic sensors and artificial intelligence (AI) that can also incorporate the latest Geofencing and drone technology.
"Even as a future and a long-term solution, 'The Great Wall' idea is a wildly expensive, ineffective, and misdirected effort considering the 1032 km long border covered by dense and uneven terrain.
"We should look into 21st-century solutions instead," said Tan who called on the government to involve homegrown technology companies to take part in these high-tech solutions, instead of spending billions and building a 14th-century border solution like the walls." - Mkini
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