Tun Wan Junaidi is seeking to strengthen Sarawak's border control

KUCHING, 22 Sep: Sarawak State Elder, Tun Pehin Sri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar warned that security controls at the Sarawak border should continue to be strengthened following the existence of more than 80 illegal routes or rat routes which could potentially be used for illegal cross-border activities.

He said the geographical position of Sarawak which has a wide land border with Kalimantan, Indonesia, as well as strategic water areas requires continuous cooperation between the Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM), security agencies and relevant authorities.

In a post on Tun Wan Junaidi's official Facebook, he stressed that aspects of monitoring, enforcement and coordination between agencies should be strengthened to ensure state border security and sovereignty are always maintained.

The views were expressed when he and Toh Puan Datuk Patinggi Fauziah Mohd Sanusi received a visit of honour from the Army Commander, General Tan Sri Dato' Seri Malek Razak Sulaiman, along with a delegation in Astana State Sarawak, today.

The visit was also a session to introduce Malek Razak as the new Army Commander, besides discussing various issues related to security, defense and strategic importance of Sarawak.

In the nearly hour-long meeting, Tun Wan Junaidi also stressed the importance of strengthening security preparedness in border areas to face increasingly complex cross-border challenges.

He also considered that national security and stability are essential foundations for economic development, prosperity and harmony of society.

"ATMs are advised to continue strengthening the level of preparedness and defense capabilities, including leveraging modern technological advances in the face of future security challenges", the statement said.

Tun Wan Junaidi also emphasized the importance of human capital development in ATMs, especially producing members who not only have high levels of competence and discipline, but also master expertise in technology and defense innovation.

According to him, local mastery of technology and expertise is essential in order to enable the country to increase its own capacity to produce assets as well as defense technologies, thus reducing dependence on external expertise and technology.