Sabah Kidnapping Episode, Esscom Effectiveness Increasingly Questionable

PETALING JAYA, 6 May: The kidnapping episode that occurred in Sabah will threaten the number of tourists that visit our country as it involves security.

The Member of Parliament for Batu, Tian Chua, said that the performance of the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom), with an allocation of over RM200 million, is being disputed following recurring incidents that threaten security.

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“There should be an improvement in terms of readiness to face security threats. Unfortunately, we see no additional emergency measures.

“It is feared that if this happens again, tourist confidence may drop,” he said in a press conference.

Clearly the existing tourism sector has already been threatened, in addition to the disappearance of the MH370 aircraft on March 8.

He said that ministers and agencies responsible will have to answer questions regarding this matter transparently, without having to give excuses.

In the recent kidnapping, the Manager of Wonderful Terrace Sdn Bhd, a company operating fish farms, a Chinese national, Yang Zailin was kidnapped at Silam, Lahad Datu, at 2.45 this morning.

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It is believed that a group of armed men fled toward southern Philippines.

Earlier, at about 11 pm, Sunday, four men dressed in military-style uniforms robbed a teacher and three of his friends who were fishing at the waters of Sungai Bilis in Tanjung Labian by running off in two outboard engine boats and one pump engine boat.

It was the second kidnapping in almost a month.

On April 2, a Chinese tourist, Gao Hua Yuan, 29, and an employee of Marcy Darawan resort, 40, were kidnapped by armed men from the Singamata Reef Resort in Semporna.


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