THE Immigration Department of Malaysia stood firm on the refusal to admit a female visitor from China known as Wang Xu, saying the officers conducted their duty according to the procedures outlined in the director general of Immigration’s Standing Order No. 09 of 2017.
Assistant immigration officer Syahmi Syafie Md Nazmil lodged a police report saying that allegations of widespread corruption among airport officials were unfounded.“During the investigation, the subject did not meet the requirements for tourist entry as she did not possess a return ticket to her home country and failed to clearly state her accommodation while in Malaysia.“The interrogation and communication with the subject were also limited as she only spoke Mandarin and had difficulty understanding the questions posed,” said the report.Moreover, the immigration officer alleged that the duty officers were not allowed to provide explanations or defend themselves against accusations that they requested a sum of RM3,000 through an agent for the woman’s release.This is when the Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing intervened in the matter. Photos of the minister at the KLIA arrival lounge went viral.Tiong has now urged the MACC to investigate the source of the photo leak, which he said was an inside job.The minister has also explained that he intervened after officers allegedly asked for bribes. The immigration officer denied this version, saying the minister made baseless accusations against the officers.“Tiong came to the immigration operations office expressing dissatisfaction with the decision to deny entry to the subject.“He also scolded senior officers and supervisors who refused entry to the subject, stating ‘you are the culprit,’ and made baseless accusations by claiming that officers demanded RM3,000 through an agent to allow the subject’s entry into Malaysia.” – July 2, 2023
