KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah government has cancelled the planned implementation of the Sabah Temporary Pass (PSS) to accede to the wishes of Sabahans, said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.
Mohd Shafie said yesterday that this was decided by the state cabinet and the decision would be conveyed to the Home Ministry (KDN).
“The people’s voices against this (PSS) were heard not only at the level of the Kimanis by-election but also throughout, and we took note of the voices.
“Therefore, the Sabah state cabinet would like to inform the KDN as the ministry responsible (for the implementation) to cancel the plan to implement the PSS in June this year,” he told a press conference after the signing of a collaboration note between the Human Resource Development Department and Universiti Kuala Lumpur and Petra Energy Berhad here.
In September last year, Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, after chairing a meeting of the Committee on Management of Foreigners in Sabah, announced that the PSS would be implemented in June this year to replace the three documents ― IMM13, census card and ‘Kad Burung-Burung’ ― issued to long-staying foreigners in Sabah.
However, the plan received opposition from various quarters, especially opposition parties, which made it an issue in the recent Kimanis parliamentary by-election campaign.
Mohd Shafie said the state government had been listening out for the people’s voices on the PSS since the announcement on its implementation.
“But it is evident that the people’s voices in the Kimanis by-election are a signal, including in almost all Kadazandusun Murut areas. We heard their voices,” he added.
He stressed that the cancellation of the PSS plan was not decided by any individual but was a collective decision of the cabinet.
Mohd Shafie said he would be going to Kuala Lumpur next week to discuss the Sabah government’s decision to cancel the PSS plan with the Home Ministry.
Asked on other mechanism to tackle the illegal immigrant (PTI) issue in the state after this, he said the Home Ministry and the state government would carry out their responsibilities to combat this problem.
“We will do what we can to ensure that this situation (PTI problem) will not jeopardise the security and environment in Sabah,” said Mohd Shafie. − Bernama
