Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim demands no repeat of technical failures at Malaysia’s entry points, with border agency chiefs told to monitor systems closely ahead of major tourism drive.
PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has directed that recent technical disruptions at the Sultan Iskandar Building (BSI) immigration complex in Johor must not recur at any of the country’s entry points.
Malaysia Border Control and Protection Agency (AKPS) director-general Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain said the directive was conveyed by Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
“The Home Minister placed very high emphasis on this incident because what happened led the Prime Minister to issue a directive that this must not happen again,” Mohd Shuhaily said.
He added the matter was especially crucial with Visit Malaysia Year 2026 approaching.
Mohd Shuhaily stated he has personally instructed all commanders, particularly at BSI and the Sultan Abu Bakar Complex (KSAB), to monitor entry systems strictly.
He said commanders must alert headquarters at the first sign of any system issues so troubleshooting can begin early.
“If the system has broken down, you must do it manually,” he explained, adding that commanders must react quickly to facilitate travellers during any outage.
The order follows a major technical glitch last Saturday that caused most immigration autogates at Malaysia’s two land entries with Singapore to malfunction.
Tens of thousands of travellers were reportedly stranded in long queues as a result.
As of yesterday, the eGate system disruption at BSI had not fully recovered, though border operations continued with the impact limited to foreign passport holders.
