Mohd Zaki (centre) witnessing the handover of duties from Fifth Infantry Brigade commander Brigadier General Datuk Ranjit Singh Ramday (left) to his successor Brigadier General Jalaludin Manan.
KOTA KINABALU: The establishment of the Fifth Infantry Division under the Royal Malaysia Army (RMA) would be a positive move to help strengthen the security system in Sabah, RMA Lieutenant General Datuk Mohd Zaki Mohktar said.
However, he said the establishment of a new division would take some time after taking into several considerations such as restructuring and additional manpower.
“To establish a new division is time-consuming in terms of training of personnel, equipment and weapons.
“At the moment, the RMA has four divisions where three of them are stationed in Peninsular Malaysia while the fourth division is being administered in Sabah and Sarawak.
“To strengthen the security system in the country, the RMA is working to form a new division in Sabah while Sarawak will be given an available division,” Mohd Zaki said this at a press conference after witnessing the handing over of duties from outgoing Fifth Infantry Brigade Commander Brigadier General Datuk Ranjit Singh Ramday and his successor Brigadier General Jalaludin Manan at the Lok Kawi Camp here yesterday.
Meanwhile, Mohd Zaki said Task Force 450, which was established on March 1 in Sarawak, is a positive move for the establishment of the Fifth Division Infantry in Sabah.
“We have the Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCOM) to protect our waters on the east coast, and the RMA is planning to set up a Border Brigade, which is land border, to strengthen our security system,” he said, adding that the Task Force 450 would be operating at Lok Kawi Camp temporarily before moving to a new location in the future.