SIBU: Fifteen vagabonds were rounded up in this town during a joint operation to save them on Monday night.
The 15 vagabonds comprised nine locals, two foreigners (Thai and Indonesian), three with mental disorder and one without identification document.
Minister of Welfare, Community Well Being, Women, Family and Childhood Development, Datuk Fatimah Abdullah who joined in the operation led 164 personnel from the Welfare Department, police, Sibu District Office, Sibu Hospital and Sibu Health Department Office, Immigration Department, National Registration Department, JPAM, National Anti Drug Agency (AADK), Islamic Religious office, Sibu Municipal Council, Sibu Rural District Council, Rela and non-governmental organisations.
The group was divided into teams that were assigned to several locations such as the Central Market, Kingwood Hotel, Pansar Building, Post Office, Paramount Hotel and Sungai Merah Bus Terminal.
Fatimah told reporters that there are two types of vagabonds in Sibu town. The first type is real vagabonds while the other is ‘temporary’ vagabonds.
She explained that the ‘temporary’ vagabonds are deemed to be those who have either missed their express boats and have no place to put up for the night or no money for the fares to go home so they have to sleep on the five-foot way.
“Some vagabonds also have problem with family members and they do not want to return home so they have to sleep on the five-foot way. We categorise them also as ‘temporary’ vagabonds because after we contact their family members, their family members took them home,” she explained.
On the Social Development Council, Fatimah said that the council would get information of the real vagabonds and will make a profiling for them.
“We will get the information of the real vagabonds and we will make a profiling and from that we will look for the factors that make them become vagabonds whether it is due to economic factor, health, mental, being involved in drug abuse or from poor families and have no identification cards,” she said.
Fatimah added that the joint operation actually has multi-purpose objectives as it involved various agencies.
“What we are doing tonight is not only for one purpose but it is actually has multi-purpose objectives where we not only save the vagabonds but also try to find those who need help where the agencies involved in the operation will give immediate assistance,” she said.
On the vagabonds found during the joint operation, Fatimah said all of them were taken to Rumah Maksak Sibu where they were given food and interviewed by the agencies involved including urine tests conducted by AADK.
“After the interviewing process, among the actions to be taken are their family members are contacted and if they have no family the related agency will get a court order to place them in Rumah Seri Kenangan,” Fatimah said.
