640 MCBA personnel to secure Bukit Chagar RTS Link

Johor Baru: Approximately 640 Malaysian Border Control and Protection Agency (MCBA) personnel will be stationed at the Bukit Chagar RTS Link Immigration, Customs and Quarantine (ICQ) Complex commencing January 1. MCBA director-general Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain disclosed that the agency has already initiated operations at the facility, with personnel undergoing training and orientation concerning its systems, security protocols, and operational demands.

He added that around 400 recruits, who are set to complete their training at the Police Training Centre in Segamat by the conclusion of September, will be deployed to Bukit Chagar.

The station is anticipated to process up to 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction during peak times, necessitating coordinated and efficient border operations. MCBA personnel will assume responsibility for unified border security, passenger scrutiny, and cross-border operational coordination under a single command structure.

Following the soft inauguration of the MCBA office at the station, Shuhaily elaborated that border clearance systems at the station would predominantly be digitalized, encompassing automated gates and QR-based processing. Nevertheless, personnel will also be trained to carry out manual checks in the event of system malfunctions.

Six agencies will be operating at the station, with extensive joint exercises scheduled to ensure personnel are prepared for high-volume cross-border movements. The emphasis will be on discipline, system preparedness, security procedures, and contingency plans. The RTS Link will link Bukit Chagar in Johor Baru with Woodlands North in Singapore, with the cross-border journey projected to last about five minutes.