PUTRAJAYA, Oct 28 — The National Registration Department is to conduct a biometric examination of the identification documents of all security guards in the country.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the inspection would begin soon but no timeframe had been set.
“The inspection, involving more than 600 security companies, will cover both armed and unarmed guards,” he told reporters after Cambodia’s Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Oknha Othman Hassan, called on him at his office here.
Zahid also said that the licence of security companies would be withdrawn if they were found to have been engaging in activities other than that stated in the licensing conditions.
Investigations would be undertaken to verify information received by the ministry that certain companies had used the security and firearms handling licences for other purposes, he said.
“We have received information on this matter and the ministry will act soon,” he said.
The minister’s announcement comes in the wake of an incident last Wednesday when a security guard shot dead an AmBank operations officer, Norazita Abu Talib, 37, during a robbery at the branch of the bank in Jalan USJ 2, Subang Jaya, Selangor.
Following the incident, the Home Ministry cancelled the operating licence of the security company the guard belonged to because it had failed to comply with the Private Agencies Act 1971.
A police investigation revealed that the guard, who hailed from Sulawesi, Indonesia, had used a false identity card to gain employment. — Bernama
