[UPDATED] MACC to meet Tiong over alleged graft at KLIA Immigration: report

KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) will meet Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing tomorrow over allegations of graft among Immigration officers at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki said this to Utusan Malaysia, adding that the agency will also meet the Chinese national whose alleged detention by Immigration officials led to Tiong’s intervention recently.

Azam said MACC had to obtain its own information on the matter, as the allegations have so far only been exposed through media reports.

He urged for patience, adding that MACC would investigate according to the law.

Azam yesterday said MACC would investigate Tiong’s claims that there are Immigration officials at KLIA who detain tourists soon after arrival and demand money in exchange for their release.

The minister revealed this when confirming that he was indeed involved in a commotion at KLIA last week, during which he allegedly breached a security area to assist a Chinese national who had been detained despite having valid documents.

Tiong said there had been communication problems between the Chinese citizen and Immigration officers, and questioned why his previous requests for translators for foreign arrivals had not been implemented. 

However, he also claimed that he had been made aware of some officers asking for bribes from tourists they had detained.

Transport Minister Anthony Loke confirmed that Tiong, as a minister, has VIP access to security areas in KLIA, while travel and tourism groups threw their support behind Tiong for exposing these long-standing concerns that affect the tourism industry.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, after a surprise visit to Immigration and Customs officers on duty at KLIA earlier today, said only a small group of them are “problematic”, and an investigation would be carried out after the said incident involving Tiong and the Chinese tourist. – The Vibes, July 2, 2023