KOTA KINABALU, Sept 22 — Businessman Dato’ Albert Tei was initially barred from entering Sabah today despite having a court mention scheduled at the Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court tomorrow.
According to his lawyer, Mahajoth Singh, Tei was stopped at Kota Kinabalu International Airport at around 12:30 p.m. by immigration officers, who cited a “restriction from the Chief Minister’s Office.”
Tei was only allowed to enter after proving he had an ongoing court case, submitting documents to the immigration officer, and was permitted entry for just two days, reportedly at the officer’s discretion.
Singh described the incident as deeply disturbing, saying that a Malaysian citizen cannot be arbitrarily barred from entering Sabah. He noted that justifying such an act based on alleged instructions from the Chief Minister’s Office violates Articles 5 and 9 of the Federal Constitution.
“The matter is even more serious given that my client has made corruption allegations against the Chief Minister. Any purported restriction appears self-serving and a blatant abuse of power,” Singh said.
He has formally asked the Chief Minister to clarify whether the instruction came from his office, and if not, why the immigration authorities acted on such a claim.
“Either the Chief Minister’s Office authorised this unlawful act, or the Immigration Department acted unlawfully. In either case, my client is entitled under the law to a clear explanation. We expect a response within 24 hours,” Singh added.
