Congestion at Johor checkpoints due to tighter immigration checks at motorcycle lanes: Official

ISKANDAR PUTERI, Johor – Heavy congestion at both land checkpoints in Johor in the past few days has been linked to tighter immigration procedures following several cases of motorcyclists slipping through without undergoing passport checks.

Johor works, transportation, infrastructure and communications committee chairman Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh said the stricter standard operating procedures (SOPs) were imposed at the motorcycle lanes of the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar and Kompleks Sultan Abu Bakar customs, immigration and quarantine checkpoints over the past few days.

“The congestion mainly involved users of the manual counters, which require officers to physically inspect and scan each passport.

“Manual checks take more than 30 seconds for each person, especially when immigration officers have to handle more than one passport at a time,” he told the media on the sidelines of the State Assembly sitting at Kota Iskandar on Nov 20.

Mr Fazli added that the enhanced SOPs follow enforcement action reported by the Malaysian Border Control and Protection Agency.

“The congestion was unavoidable for now as enforcement officers needed to prevent further cases where motorcyclists bypass immigration checks.

“There were cases where people passed through the manual lane without showing their passports. This should not happen and that is why tighter checks are necessary,” he said. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK