Jauteh
KOTA KINABALU (Dec 19): The alleged eviction of the widow of a heroic police officer killed in the Tanduo Tragedy has been exploited by certain parties to undermine the ongoing demolition operation of an illegal immigrant squatter colony in Semporna.
Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Jauteh Dikun said the police have been investigating the issue of the house going to be demolished at Kampung Alab, a water village on Bodgaya Island in Semporna, which has been going viral in social media since Wednesday.
“Investigation however revealed that the news is not true while the widow (Sitti Bandorah Mahalil) of the deceased is not staying at the said area. The house in question belongs to her father which was built in the 1980s and is only occupied by her siblings.
“Investigations also revealed that Sitti Bandorah is not staying in any water village but on land, and has a couple of houses of her own,” he told a press conference at the Sabah police headquarters in Kepayan yesterday.
Jauteh said during the house demolition operation, enforcement authorities never issued any threats against any individual and no houses were demolished, only several unoccupied houses that were believed to belong to foreigners near the area were dismantled.
He added that the police had stressed from the beginning that any houses owned by citizens or locals would not be taken down in the operation even though a notice was issued by the Sabah Parks and enforcement agencies, including the Royal Malaysian Police who were part of the operation group.
“Based on records, out of a total of 3,257 houses demolished in this operation which we have dubbed as ‘Op Koloni Setinggan’, to date not a single house belonging to a Malaysian citizen has been dismantled and I believe that this issue is being exploited by certain groups to try to weaken the operation being planned by the police to reduce or eliminate illegal immigrant (PTI) squatter colonies.
“For everyone’s information, Sitti Bandorah also has a son who is a senior police officer and further strengthens the fact that there are certain groups who are trying to exploit this issue,” he said.
Jauteh said the area involved belonged to Sabah Parks and any related issues including the villages which were allegedly built since the 1980s would be handed over to the state government and Sabah Parks to resolve.
Jauteh however said that police had not received any reports and did not rule out the possibility of taking action against individuals or parties who are taking advantage of this issue for exploitation.
“When this issue occurred, we sent our officer, the acting Semporna district police chief, to meet with the family to find out the real situation.
“The feedback from Sitti Bandorah stated that she sometimes comes to the place to visit her family and she also claimed that there was a slight misunderstanding during the process.
“We will continue the investigation and I hope the public is aware of this case and not to blame the authorities in carrying out operations to reduce and overcome the problem of PTIs and squatter colonies in Sabah, especially on the east coast of Sabah,” he said.
Earlier, a news went viral about the authorities’ action to demolish the houses of residents in Kampung Alab and one of the houses belonged to the widow of Sergeant Major Abdul Azis Sarikon, one of the six security forces killed during an ambush in Pulau Simunul Semporna, following the Tanduo intrusion in Lahad Datu in 2013.
Sabah Parks director Dr Maklarin Lakim said the area involved was under the Tun Sakaran Marine Park, and the operation was under the Semporna Security Committee.
He said the demolition was necessary for the safety of tourists and there were security risks that have been identified.
Maklarin also said that only new structures built by ‘newcomers’ to the village were destroyed while original houses were not torn down.
Meanwhile, Sitti Bandorah, when contacted by Bernama in Semporna later on Thursday, said she would file a police report to defend the heritage house that her father built in Kampung Alab in the 1970s and also cultivated several acres on the island with mango, longan and coconut trees.
“Sabah Parks issued a notice to vacate in May this year and in June, four of my brother’s family’s houses, one of my sister’s houses built on water on the island were demolished by enforcement and they had to move to Semporna town.
“Last Monday (Dec 16), I went to the heritage house … on Tuesday there was a demolition of 10 neighbouring houses and fruit crops were cut down…,” she said.
Sitti Bandorah claimed that in 2004 when Sabah Parks ‘entered the scene’, residents were promised that the village would become customary land as it was developed with crops, wells and even a burial ground.
“The villagers obeyed the law when the area was gazetted,” she said, adding that her grandmother was also buried on the island in 1981.
Apart from Abdul Azis, the other five killed in the Tanduo Tragedy at Pulau Simunul were DSP Michael Anak Padel; Assistant Commissioner Ibrahim Lebar; SM Baharin Hamit; Sergeant Salam Togiran and Corporal Mohd Azrul Tukiran.
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