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Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal
KOTA BELUD (September 2): The federal government should not make decisions on its own to restrict the entry of people to Sabah, said Acting Chief Minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal.
He said this after DAP Secretary General Lim Guan Eng alleged that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) had tried to prevent him from entering the state when he arrived at Kota Kinabalu International Airport yesterday.
Referring to the commission’s ongoing case against Lim, Shafie said that while a person with a MACC case may be barred from leaving the country, the person can still travel between states.
“This is something that should be coordinated with the state government. The federal government should not make decisions on its own, as the state government also has the authority to restrict entry to Sabah to anyone.
“This is established in the constitution. The right is still in the hands of the state government. So I hope there will be cooperation to make sure everything is in order, ”he told reporters when he met during the presentation of property titles to the people of Kota Belud in Taginambur today.
He opined that if all those with existing MACC cases were barred from entering Sabah, then individuals like former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak should also be barred from entering, as he too has an ongoing case.
Shafie noted that since taking over as prime minister in 2018, he had never banned anyone from entering the state.
He said he even lifted the entry ban on politicians like Tian Chua, Nurul Izzah Anwar and Teresa Kok two days after being sworn in as prime minister.
In a Facebook post earlier today, Lim, who is a former Finance Minister, claimed that he was detained at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport immigration office after he arrived last night.
He said the MACC had told him that he had been denied entry, but after about 30 minutes, he was allowed to enter the state.
MACC chief Datuk Seri Azam Baki has denied Lim’s claim that the commission had denied him entry to Sabah.
“There is no domestic (restriction). The court only confiscated his passport so that he cannot leave the country. You can enter Sabah using your CI, ”she told Malaysiakini.
Lim is currently facing corruption charges in court over the Penang Underwater Tunnel Project.
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