The state and federal governments must work together when it comes to the security of Sabah, said Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein.

He said the state and federal governments must continue to work together to ensure no outside threat again.

“If there is no working relationship between the state and federal, then chaos will happen.

“We do not want another Tanduo (Lahad Datu-Tanduo standoff) incident to happen again,” he said.

According to Hishammuddin, 70 percent of the army personnel stationed in Sabah are from the Peninsular.

“If there is no working relationship between state and federal, then how can the Defense Minister ensure our security forces will be accepted by the state government.

“Coordination and working relationship between the state government and the federal government, especially in the context of security of the country, must never be politicised,” he said during his working visit to the Lok Kawi Army Camp here on Saturday.

Also present were Community Development and People’s Wellbeing Minister Datuk Shahelmey Yahya and Deputy Works Minister Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurup.

Meanwhile, Hishammuddin said more then 16,000 army personnel are on standby and ready to be mobilised to 5,000 flood hotspots throughout Malaysia.

“For Sabah, 1,567 army personnel together with 600 assets are on standby and ready to be mobilised anytime when needed upon instruction from the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) and the National Security Council,” he said.

Meanwhile, in a statement, the Defence Minister said safety and security of Sabah are of utmost importance.

Hishammuddin said he was satisfied with the effort following visits to Armed Forces camps in the region during his two-day working visit to the state.

“However, as I previously said, efforts to fortify the security levels in Sabah are ongoing and will be upgraded from time to time.”

Among the initiatives that had helped bolster the Armed Forces in Sabah were the construction of a new army camp in Felda Lahad Datu that has been approved; the partial delivery of the MD530G helicopters to Sabah, and setting up an air station at the Kota Kinabalu Navy base.

“Despite all these efforts, it is important that I state that this wouldn’t have been possible if there hadn’t been a strong partnership between the Federal Government, specifically the Defence Ministry (Mindef), and the Sabah state government.

“On the Mindef level, I give my assurance that this partnership will be continued to greater heights,” he added.

Source:
courtesy of THE BORNEO POST

by ELTON GOMES

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