On the 7th of April 2024, a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) boat came under fire from three men while they were approaching the boat that the three men were on while patrolling off the waters of Kunak, Sabah. Two MMEA personnel were wounded; Bintara Muda Maritim (English equivalent, Petty Officer) Zainal Abad Komel received an injury on his left eye, while Laskar Kanan Maritim (English equivalent, Leading Rate) Prayrie De Cuella Jimin had both his arms wounded.
The surprise shooting came as a surprise, as the situation in the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSZONE) has stabilised so much that a sense of security has returned. But with this shooting, the sense of peace established with much sweat and tears has now shattered.
Missing Details
That said, Malaysian news media outlets have reported the incident to the minute details, except for two sorely missed details.
Media outlets published a BERNAMA-provided photo of Bintara Muda Maritim Zainal crouching down with blood streaming from his wounded left eye. The arm of an unidentified person reached out to him, presumably to provide first aid.
Lack of Body Armour and Kevlar Helmet
The first missing detail is the MMEA personnel's lack of body armour and Kevlar helmet. Kunak sits within the ESSZone. The Malaysian government declared the area as part of ESSZone due to the Sulu militants' intrusion back in 2013. Other than the Sulu militants, the areas under ESSZone have a history of piracy, high-seas robbers, and Kidnap-For-Ransom (KFR) groups. The most brazen attack happened in 1985, when a group of pirates attacked Lahad Datu town, including the police station, to commit a town-wide robbery.
As long as the Philippine government cannot eliminate the threats in Southern Philippines, MMEA should at least require and provide their personnel in field operations in the ESSZone area with body armour and Kevlar helmets. Granted, the two MMEA personnel received injuries on parts of their bodies that were usually not protected by these gears. But at least the gears would protect them from heavier or more fatal injuries.
Cropped Photo
The report did not cover the second detail, the MMEA's personnel fighting spirit. Unfortunately, the BERNAMA-provided photo cropped out Bintara Muda Maritim Zainal's right hand, which he was still holding onto his service pistol, as they had just been in a firefight. He had fought even though he just had his left eye shot by the bandits.
Some other photos, shared directly by the photographer to others and shared online, showed his right hand holding his service pistol at the ready.
Perhaps I have been too harsh on the media outlets. Showing the officer holding just a service pistol against sea-going bandits who might be heavily armed pirates might imply that the MMEA had only sent the men to a gunfight armed with pistols.
However, further scrutiny of the photo showed at least one rifle cartridge at the injured man's feet. But then again, who sees these details?
That said, we must credit the Borneo Post for their reporting. They interviewed both wounded personnel, which gave a clearer picture of what had transpired. In the Borneo Post report, Bintara Muda Maritim Zainal's quick reflex of turning his boat at the last minute probably saved his life as the manoeuvre threw the suspect's aim at him. Had he not done so, his injuries may have been fatal. Despite being injured, he still tried to chase the armed suspects, ignoring his injuries. Laskar Kanan Maritim Prayrie fought back even after both his arms were injured. He managed to return fire and may have hit some of the suspects. The suspects managed to evade capture because the low tide prevented them from reaching the suspects' boat.
Update
The latest media report quoted the Director General of MMEA, Admiral (Maritime) Datuk Hamid Mohd Amin, confirming that Bintara Muda Zainal had lost his left eye from his injury. While another personnel, Laskar Kanan Maritim Prayrie, sustained gunshots to both arms and is now stable.
The Police have since confirmed they have identified one of the suspects involved in the shooting and are in the process of identifying another two suspects.
Federal Government's Responsibility
That said, the nitpicking on the media does not change the reality on the ground. The Federal Government has a moral responsibility to provide the much-needed security to the people of Sabah.
This much-needed security guarantee comes in the form of better equipment for both MMEA and the Navy. Both agencies require better boats and ships to put more boots on the deck and have larger security footprints. Unfortunately, successive Federal Government administrations have failed to provide the sorely needed guarantee.
The Federal Government failed to ensure that the shipbuilders contracted to deliver new patrol vessels to both agencies completed their work on time. At least, the MMEA is more willing to receive second-hand ships from foreign countries. At the same time, the Navy is still not in the market for available decommissioned ships of foreign navies. Should I cover this story in a separate article?
Danny Liew is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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