[VIDEO] Amid long queues at Immigration’s Pudu office, guards threaten to remove media from premises

KUALA LUMPUR – It is a tense situation at the Immigration Department in the Pudu Urban Transformation Centre here as crowds who have been waiting since early morning are told at 11am to come back another day.

Security guards also threatened a reporter who was there to speak to the crowds, telling her she must leave the premises or more guards will be called to escort her out.

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Two reporters from The Vibes were subjected to a barrage of verbal intimidation and threats at the @imigresenmy office in UTC Pudu today.

The guard is heard yelling "This is UTC! Do you understand?! Get out!" despite the reporters identifying themselves as media. pic.twitter.com/IIGTFJBxYG

— TheVibes.com (@thevibesnews) May 14, 2022

The reporter was told that she could not take pictures and speak to those standing in line along the corridors without formal approval.

Another guard told the reporter that photos and videos taken in the building were also not allowed without prior permission from management authorities while questioning which media agency the reporter was from.

When asked about images posted online by members of the public, the guard could not provide an explanation, saying he was only following orders from his superiors.

Later on, the guards forcefully snatched away her phone when they realised they were being recorded while shouting at the reporter to leave.

The situation escalated when the reporters attempted to speak with members of the public, only to be stopped by the guards, despite displaying government-issued media cards.

“You need permission to be here! This is UTC, do you understand?!” a guard shouted at the reporter.

Several members of the public then told off the guards, and her phone was returned.

The crowd of people chastised the guard, accusing them of intimidation and assault, with an individual saying: “Stop shouting! We can all be patient, why can’t you?”

One of the guards claimed that passport-issuing offices in UTCs are unable to operate up to 10pm due to “lack of approval by the Finance Ministry”.

This appears to contradict Immigration Director-General Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud’s announcement that all immigration counters at Urban Transformation Centres in the peninsula would open until 10pm. – The Vibes, May 14, 2022

Additional reporting by Lancelot Theseira

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