'Ministers have access to restricted areas in KLIA' - Loke

SEREMBAN - Cabinet Ministers have a special VIP pass to access all areas at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook said there was no issue when Tourism, Arts, and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing entered the airport arrival hall.

"Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) gave me a report yesterday (Friday) when YB Tiong was at KLIA. He was accompanied by auxiliary police and MAHB security personnel.

"In terms of the security pass, that is not an issue. Actually, every minister has a VIP pass to enter the airport, even if sometimes we don't board a flight.

"Even yesterday (Friday), I was at the airport; I didn't take a flight but launched one flight, so I could enter the restricted areas such as the departure hall and so on," he said.

He was speaking at a press conference after the DAP state committee meeting at the Negeri Sembilan DAP office on Saturday.

He revealed that the minister in question was indeed eligible to enter the restricted area at KLIA if there was an official duty.

However, Loke said that he was not sure of the actual incident because he was not at the scene when it happened and there was no surveillance camera recording.

"Other than that, in terms of the issue with the Immigration Department, the Home Ministry will carry out a more detailed investigation, and it may be discussed at the Cabinet level later," he said.

Previously, the media reported that a minister allegedly entered the KLIA international arrival hall to free a Chinese national detained by immigration.

The incident also went viral on social media when the minister involved was said to have entered the area without applying for a security pass.

His intention was believed to be to rescue a Chinese woman who was denied entry to the country upon arrival at the airport.

However, Tiong admitted on Saturday to being involved in the incident and even pointed out that he intended to expose a shameful matter.

He claimed the existence of a corruption culture practised by a few officials and chronic power abuse at the country's entry.