KUALA LUMPUR, July 3 — In light of the recent allegations against the Immigration Department, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has advised civil servants to leave their "old ways” behind for the country to strive for excellence.

In his speech during a meeting with staff of the Prime Minister’s Department, he said that action must be taken against those who are involved in corruption.

"So that’s why we in the top leadership must see it for ourselves because we cannot assume that everything is alright.

"But the objective needs to be right, to improve, not to find wrong or to condemn or give a general impression.

"That is why I went there, and I decided to defend the integrity and the authority of the Immigration Department as a whole.

"But I also stressed that a small number still feel that they are comfortable with the ‘old ways’.

"We have to take action immediately and be uncompromising because it affects our careers, image as civil servants and the country as a whole,” he said.

Anwar’s comments come after he made a surprise visit to the Customs and Immigration officers of Kuala Lumpur International Airport’s (KLIA) Terminal 1 yesterday.

Despite discovering a few shortcomings during his visit to the airport, Anwar said that he is generally satisfied with the level of service but pointed out that such flaws must be addressed from time to time.

"Striving for excellence is not necessarily a new concept; it has always existed,” he added.

Previously, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing made headlines after apparently forcing his way into the arrival hall of KLIA’s Terminal 1 without a valid pass.

In response to the brickbats thrown at his minister, Anwar said the Cabinet will discuss the incident as well as the ensuing allegations made by Tiong on Wednesday.

On Friday, Tiong issued a statement explaining that he was at the arrival hall of KLIA’s Terminal 1 on a work visit and that he had a valid pass at that time.

The Bintulu MP also claimed to have been informed that Immigration officers had allegedly demanded RM3,000 from foreign tourists to secure their release from detention.

He further claimed that an additional RM3,000 was sought if the tourists wanted to return to their country of origin immediately using a "special lane”, along with RM12,000 as the cost for visa processing.

Separately, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) confirmed it had commenced investigations into the allegations of corruption involving Immigration officers as raised by Tiong.

Both Tiong and a Chinese national have been reportedly called to the national anti-graft body headquarters later today.