'Saifuddin can check his ministry's data ' -  Dr M

SHAH ALAM - Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has urged for Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail to check the data of Chinese tourists who have not returned to their homeland.

Dr Mahathir said the technology now allows for data to be obtained at all entry and exit points of the country because every tourist needs to show a passport that has sufficient details.

"The one who has the information is the Home Ministry and its ministers. Every year, the government declares the number of incoming tourists.

"The government certainly knows the number of people leaving. Why do you ask me? Isn't it the responsibility of the Ministry and its Minister to count who comes in and who comes out," he said in a statement on Facebook on Monday.

The Home Ministry on July 21 was reported to be unable to accurately prove the alleged claim that there were millions of Chinese tourists who have not returned to their homeland and overstayed.

Saifuddin had said that the issue was not new, rather it had been exposed by Dr Mahathir before the 2018 election.

Dr Mahathir explained that the Home Ministry had stated this matter in Parliament as reported by a local newspaper on the July 27, last year, where more than 1.2 million Chinese nationals did not leave Malaysia after arriving in the country between 2018 and 2021.

"The figure of 1.5 million was mentioned by others, I just accept what has been claimed," Dr Mahathir had said.

"If I am given access to all the records I can prove it. But to check the records kept by the government, the fee is very high. It's as if the government wants to hide data," he said

Dr Mahathir also claimed that he had met many of the Chinese tourists involved and many of them had houses in Kuala Lumpur.

"What is the use of records if even the Minister cannot get information about the data in them?

"Many more records are kept by the government. For example, who owns land and who is rich and who lives in luxury housing," he said.

Dr Mahathir stressed that the people have the right to know the data and the government's policy regarding the information.