Following the invasion in 2013 by a group of militants in Lahad Datu, Sabah, our Malaysian government has vowed to beef up the security at the borders. Despite all the efforts, an intrusion is believed to have happened yet again just recently.
Source: Foto Warung
According to NST, five heavily-armed men were spotted by a plantation worker in Felda Sahabat in Cenderawasih on April 30th. The 52-year-old farmer was working on the banana crops at the riverbank when he heard the gunmen talking across the river.
Based on the farmer’s description, the gunmen in camouflage pants and military boots were heavily-armed with M60 general-purpose machine guns, including M16 and M14 rifles. The armed men also had their shoulders wrapped with a piece of red cloth.
Source: Facebook
Realising they’ve been seen, the gunmen approached the farmer in a calm manner and asked if he’s a Filipino or an Indonesian. The armed men appeared to be calm and spoke in Malay with a strong Filipino accent.
Upon learning that the farmer was a Filipino, they started conversing to him in Tagalog, and reassured him that they meant no harm. In fact, they claimed that their presence was to save the people of Sabah and not to cause any trouble. But how are they going to achieve that?
What’s more shocking was that the gunmen revealed that 37 of their ‘colleagues’ have landed on the beach. I don’t know about you, but I have a bad feeling about this.Â
The farmer told his encounter to his friend before lodging a police report at the Cenderawasih police station. Sabah Police Commissioner, Datuk Ramli Din has also confirmed the incident when contacted by the reporters. He said:
“I will not underestimate the allegation and detailed investigations will be conducted. Security in the east coast of Sabah is still under control.”
Besides, Ramli also stressed that the investigation is in full-swing and he urged the public not to panic or make speculations.
Let’s hope that the police can quickly resolve the problem before it escalates to a shootout that happened four years ago that killed 10 Malaysian security forces and 60 militants. Fingers crossed!
Also read: ISIS Attempted to Abduct Najib Razak but PDRM Saved Him, Says Deputy PM
