KUALA LUMPUR: The private company responsible for handling travellers who were issued the immigration department’s “Not to Land” (NTL) notice at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) is being investigated, transport minister Loke Siew Fook said.
Loke said representatives from the ministry and Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) have been meeting with the airline committee which hired the firm.
“We have to find out from the AOC (KLIA Airline Operators Committee) about the contract period and terms they agreed to.
“Action will only be taken once we have received all the details,” he told reporters after officiating the Nature Positive Infrastructure programme today.
Earlier, MAHB denied awarding a contract to the company based at KLIA.
Loke said the company was hired by AOC in 2015 to “handle the NTL lounge”.
“This company was not appointed by MAHB. I even asked MAHB at (yesterday’s) post-Cabinet meeting, and they said they did not hire the company,” he said.
He said AOC hired the company because under the Immigration Act, travellers issued NTL notices have to be managed by the airlines which flew them in.
“The airlines must handle them in the sense that they must provide them food and arrange their travel out of the country,” he said.
“However, for KLIA (Terminal) 1, the AOC appointed a private company to handle this matter, which is why we have this issue now.”
Yesterday, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief Azam Baki said an agent, who purportedly solicited a fee to help a Chinese national after she was allegedly denied entry into Malaysia last Thursday, is linked to a company given a contract by MAHB to manage travellers slapped with the NTL notice.
He said MACC is tracking down the agent, who is believed to be a foreigner.
Azam said MACC will also record a statement from the company in the near future, adding that it will “thoroughly investigate” whether the contract given to the company was allowed by the government.
Last Friday, tourism, arts and culture minister Tiong King Sing admitted to being in a commotion with immigration officers at KLIA’s Terminal 1 after he attempted to intervene in the case of a Chinese national who was prohibited entry into Malaysia.
Tiong claimed his visit to the airport had exposed a “culture of corruption by a few officials and the chronic abuse of power”.
Yesterday, Azam said MACC had recorded statements from at least 14 people involved in the incident, including Tiong, the Chinese woman, and eight immigration officers.
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