KUALA LUMPUR, March 20 — Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad today stressed that the private security services industry played an important role in contributing to the country’s economy, both directly and indirectly.

He said the industry was capable of bringing in sophisticated security technology to country, and at the same time, potentially produce security innovations that could be marketed locally and abroad.

“This is where the challenge lies for security services industry operators, which is to balance their responsibilities as entrepreneurs and at the same time, deliver creative and innovative security products.

“When a sense of security can be created within the society, people from all walks of life can go on with their activities and this includes businesses and services,” he said at the 2019 Malaysian Security Services Industry Excellence Awards tonight.

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Also present were Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and the Security Services Association of Malaysia president Datuk Seri Mustapa Ali.

Dr Mahathir said countries were faced with a big challenge in ensuring security of their peoples was assured in the face of various security issues like terrorism, trans-border crimes and non-traditional threats. 

“As such, private security services play an important role is assisting the police in crime prevention by channeling information and cooperating with the authorities to create a safe environment in the areas under their jurisdiction,” he said. 

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Meanwhile, Dr Mahathir said the government would continue with the implementation of the Certified Security Guards (CSG) programme that is being jointly undertaken by the association and the Royal Malaysia Police to improve the image of the industry.

He said the government was also committed to produce skilled workers for the industry including by strengthening Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

 It will also include collaboration with public universities in the country to develop programmes specifically for the industry, apart from producing managerial level personnel who are more skilled and professional. — Bernama