KOTA KINABALU: Commissioner Datuk Jauteh Dikun has reaffirmed that the Sabah police contingent was serious about combating syabu amid claims the substance was sold like “pisang goreng” (banana fritters) in the state.
The Sabah Police Chief said the state Narcotics Crime Investigation Department (NCID) has already arrested more drug-related offenders in the first six months this year compared to the same period the previous year.
He said that up to June 30, they had detained 8,993 offenders, and 88% of these had been successfully convicted in court.
He said police have also seized some 85kg of drugs, with 71kg comprising syabu.
“So, if there is news saying drugs were being sold like ‘pisang goreng’ in the state, it is an exaggerated statement.
“We always try to impose the maximum penalty on anyone involved with drugs, which means we are not ceasing in our efforts to address the issue,” Comm Jauteh told reporters at the Sabah police headquarters in Kepayan here on Tuesday (July 9).
His statement comes amid a claim by Kinabatangan MP Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin in the Dewan Rakyat last Thursday (July 4) that syabu was easily accessible and sold as low as RM30, likening the matter to buying pisang goreng.
Urging for the issue to be resolved urgently, Bung Moktar said the matter was worrying and questioned how syabu could be easily available.
Comm Jauteh said this was not the first time the pisang goreng term had been used, noting that a member of the public also claimed it in 2021.
