Materia Medica Malaysiana

Health Ministry: Illegals bring diseases to Sabah

KOTA KINABALU - The Health Ministry confirmed the existence of contagious diseases in Sabah especially in the east coast brought in from neighbouring countries by illegal immigrants entering through the "back door".
Health Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek said the foreigners could have contracted the diseases, such as dengue, malaria, fever and AIDS virus, in their countries prior to entering the state illegally.
"My ministry had taken drastic measures by positioning medical personnel at every entry and exit point in the state to examine foreigners arriving or departing. However, the state's long and porous coastline makes it difficult to detect illegal immigrants and therefore, those with these diseases could slip in easily, undetected," he said.
In this respect, Dr Chua urged employers, particularly those in the plantation sector, to stop hiring illegal immigrants whose presence in Sabah could spark many problems including health-related ones.
He also said his ministry had taken the necessary steps with the Philippine and Indonesian counterparts to address the possible spread of contagious diseases through the movement of people.
The minister assured that the situation in the state and the country against major outbreaks of diseases is under control, and the ministry will be taking the necessary measures to prevent such diseases from spreading.
It was reported that the districts in the east coast often experienced an outbreak of disease within 14 days after an outbreak was reported in southern Mindanao and Tawi Tawi island.
Health authority in a survey revealed that most of the patients afflicted with such diseases were illegal immigrants.
"Most of them were reluctant to seek medical treatment while their illnesses were still in the early stages for fear that they would be caught and handed over to the police or immigrant authorities."
Dr Chua said some were noted to have succumbed to their illnesses upon arrival at the rural clinics, following deterioration of their health conditions. The Sabah Health Department recorded 13-16 AIDS/HIV cases in Sabah yearly, with an increasing trend and 20 per cent of them involved foreign sex workers.