Sabah employers fined RM2.1mil for immigration offences this year
SANDAKAN: Employers in Sabah have been issued compounds totalling RM2.1 million under the Immigration Act this year.
Employers in Malaysia's Sabah state have been hit with a total of RM2.1 million in fines for immigration violations this year, according to Datuk Sh Sitti Saleha Habib Yussof, the state's Immigration director. The punishment came after the arrest of 238 employers, with 31 facing court proceedings. Two individuals still have outstanding cases.
The fines were imposed on the employers who were detained and subsequently charged in court. The Immigration department is firm in its stance against employers employing foreign workers without valid documents or passes. Those who facilitate the illegal immigration of workers can face severe consequences, including a maximum fine of RM50,000, imprisonment, and even whipping.
To tackle the issue of document forgery and the influx of undocumented immigrants, the department encourages employers to join the Sabah government's digital data collection programme, aimed at foreigners, particularly those in the plantation industry. This initiative is expected to curb the proliferation of false documents and illegal immigrants.
In a recent deportation operation, 909 immigrants, mostly from the Philippines and Indonesia, were sent back to their home countries. The operation, conducted through sea deportation from Sandakan and Tawau, involved 802 Filipinos and 107 Indonesians. The repatriation process continues with 802 Filipinos being transferred from the Kota Kinabalu and Papar Immigration Depots to Zamboanga City aboard the MV Antonia, and 107 Indonesians from Tawau to Nunukan Port via a commercial ferry.
This brings the total number of illegal immigrants repatriated from Sabah's four immigration depots since the start of the year to 8,405.
The current facilities at the Sandakan, Tawau, Kota Kinabalu, and Papar Immigration Depots are deemed sufficient to house detainees. However, the department has proposed the construction of a new depot in Tawau, with a capacity of 3,000 to replace the existing facility, which can only hold 1,500 detainees.
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