PUTRAJAYA, Sept 22 — Workplace rotation for Immigration staff will be implemented immediately, especially for those who have served at a place for more than three years, said Deputy Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah.

He said the work rotation will be one of the six reform measures introduced by the Malaysian Immigration Department (JIM) to dismantle syndicates involved in bringing in foreigners through the ‘counter setting’ modus operandi.

In a post on his official Facebook, he said the relevant officers have been identified and their transfer orders will be implemented in stages to ensure daily operations at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) will not be affected.

He said the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) covering entrance security control, security stamp management, and visitor inspection, will be reviewed and improved to eliminate opportunities for officers to manipulate or exploit the system.

"The third step taken by JIM is to increase supervision and monitoring including spot checks on group leaders and officers to ensure compliance will be carried out continuously by integrity officers and supervisors,” he said.

Shamsul Anuar said other actions to be taken included improving the system to enable monitoring to be done on daily transactions to detect any irregularities and installation of closed circuit television cameras (CCTV) at strategic locations.

He said strategic cooperation will be increased with other enforcement agencies such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM), Royal Malaysian Customs Department (JKDM) and other agencies from time to time.

Last Sept 18, the MACC listed 11 main weaknesses involving JIM, thus providing opportunities for syndicates to bring in foreigners using the ‘counter setting’ modus operandi.

The problems identified include the laxity in aspects of internal control when on duty which causes immigration officers to be easily approached by syndicate agents and the unsystematic workplace rotation for immigration officers on duty at KLIA Terminal 1 and 2. — Bernama