KUCHING: The Malaysian Immigration Department (JIM) is planning to use the EZ Pass to further smoothen movement of people between Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei.

Its Director-General Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali said through the EZ Pass initiative, initially passport holders might have to register with JIM first to enable them to cross the border using the 'QR Code' scanning method.

He said the initiative was started following high level talks between caretaker Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak and the Sultan of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah during their annual consultation last year and that the Chief Secretary to the Government had already been briefed on the EZ card which would be proposed to the government to be implemented soon.

"We really want to use it as quickly as possible, but issues such as counter infrastructure, cost and so forth need to be discussed some more ... because the consensus of Brunei also needs to be there, (especially) about the system to be used, must be there on both sides, then only it can operate well, "he told a media conference after delivering excellent awards to Sarawak JIM officials at the Sarawak Dewan Bahasa Dan Pustaka building here yesterday.

According to Mustafar, currently there were Frequent Traveller Facility (FTF) lanes provided at the Malaysia-Brunei border, but at certain times, such as weekends or public holidays, occasional congestion was still occurring.

Meanwhile, Mustafar said JIM was well aware and agreed with the statement of Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi recently that there were foreign agents who were using passports issued by countries which had diplomatic relations with Malaysia to sneak into the country.

He said, for the purpose of combating the activity, besides raising its own intelligence, JIM would also always work closely with other intelligence units such as the Special Branch and the military, sharing specific information to check their entry.

"We are working incessantly to ensure security and safeguard the sovereignty of the nation without any compromise," he said.

Referring to yesterday's event, Mustafar said 113 Sarawak JIM employees were presented with excellent service awards in recognition of their dedication to the service, and he said the same event would be held in Sabah, today. — Bernama