KUCHING: Twenty-six vessels from Vietnam have been detained by Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) as of August this year.
State MMEA chief, First Admiral Ismaili Bujang Pit said the figure was the highest compared to only12 vessels detained last year.
“This is the highest number of arrests made by MMEA in the 11 years it has operated here,” he said in a press conference at MMEA Headquarters at Jalan Muara Tebas here yesterday.
Meanwhile, Ismaili said there was an urgent need for MMEA to acquire a ‘landing craft’ to strengthen enforcement operations following a drastic increase in the number of foreign fishermen boats in the state’s waters, especially from Vietnam.
He said a proposal on the matter was submitted to the federal government in last April and a team from the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) would be studying the proposal.
“If the proposal is considered then it will become the pilot project for Sarawak MMEA,” he said.
