'Fuming DG' at KLIA: PSD and immigration union's conflicting accounts

The Public Service Department's (PSD) account of its director-general Mohd Shafiq Abdullah's alleged altercation at KLIA last night was vastly different from that claimed by the Immigration Services Union of Peninsular Malaysia.

In a statement, the PSD claimed Mohd Shafiq reprimanded Immigration Department officials, especially its operations chief James Lee, over alleged breaches in procedure.

The Immigration Department personnel allegedly failed to inspect Mohd Shafiq (above) and his delegation's travel documents prior to their departure from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

"They were even told to directly head for customs to continue their travel. PSD is of the view that failure to check immigration documents such as passports is a serious offence under the law. Officers who fail to observe immigration rules when travelling overseas can also face disciplinary action.

"PSD also wants to stress here that the reprimand was not done in public. The director-general only advised the officers involved to follow the rule and help solve such issues with prudence.

"He also suggested the KLIA Immigration Department needs to strengthen its compliance with standard operating procedures," said the PSD in a statement issued at 2.30am this morning.

In a statement yesterday, Immigration Services Union of Peninsular Malaysia president Khiril Niza Khairuddin accused Mohd Shafiq of getting angry for failing to receive VVIP treatment from the Immigration Department.

Khiril said Mohd Shafiq refused to wait his turn in a queue meant for the general public.

"He did not implement the leadership shown by his predecessors and was not qualified for the job," said Khiril, who demanded an apology from Mohd Shafiq.

According to Khiril, the incident took place yesterday morning at the VIP room of KLIA.

He said Mohd Shafiq got upset there were no immigration personnel in the VIP room. Khiril explained that immigration personnel are only present in the VIP room if they received early notice.

"The operations officer at KLIA was summoned (by Mohd Shafiq) and insulted publicly. He was also asked to stand straight," said Khiril.

Meanwhile, according to Bernama, Home Minister Hamzah Zainudin has ordered the Immigration Department to investigate the incident to get a clearer picture.

Hamzah reportedly told the media last night that he called Immigration Department director-general Khairul Dzaimee Daud to carry out the investigation.

"Even though things have gone viral, we have to get clear information. I don't want it to be something that might damage someone's image.

"I don't know why, but the news (of the immigration officer being abused) has reached me. Therefore, I ask him (Khairul Dzaimee) to investigate further so that I can get a clearer picture of what happened," he reportedly said.

Hamzah also asked all parties to be patient and not make any speculations regarding the incident.

"We can't run away from this issue because the videos are all there. If it really happened, I will explain later," he said. - Mkini