CIVIL DEFENCE OFFICE FOR KUNDASANG SOON

Civil Defence office for Kundasang

KOTA KINABALU September 24, 2011: Civil Defence Department Malaysia (JPAM) is making its presence felt at the landslide-prone area in Kundasang with the setting up of a unit office there, soon.

Its state director Lieutenant Colonel Mulliadi Al-Hamdi Ladin in disclosing this also added that they also hoped to set up a rescue team comprising locals in Ranau so help could be rendered immediately during emergencies.

“We are currently training locals in the area so that they would be able to react fast when the need arises,”

he said.

In addition, JPAM Director-General Datuk Abd Halim Abd Hamid also disclosed that efforts were also being carried out to set up a base station in the area, adding: “We need a proper place to operate, place our volunteers and equipment.”

Apart from Kundasang, JPAM is also planning to expand their services to other districts, namely Tuaran, Keningau, Lahad Datu and Tawau.

“This is part of our expansion programme,” said Abd Halim, adding: “We hope to set up as many offices, at least one in every district, so that we can reach out and help more people.”

Abd Halim said when he first took over the office a few years back, they were only 25 JPAM offices nationwide.

“JPAM is just a small department. In fact, five years back, we were invisible. When I took over (as the Director-General), I did some re-branding by changing the name to JPAM from JPA3, and also the uniform from green to blue, which is similar to the uniform of the International Civil Defence.

“Then I made it compulsory for all districts to set up an office in their respective area. Today, we have 95 offices with volunteers up to 300,000 nationwide,” said Abd Halim during the JPAM and Media Raya celebration, here, Thursday night.

As for Sabah, in 2004, there were only four JPAM offices with a strength of 6,000 people. The number grew to nine offices and 12,830 volunteers statewide.

“I have set a target for Sabah to have at least 17,000 volunteers, which is actually our strength. I realise that many are interested to volunteer but do not know where and how to be one. In JPAM, we welcome anyone who is willing to do extra task to help those in need, especially during emergencies,” said Abd Halim.

On the programme, he said it was JPAM’s way of showing their appreciation to its staff and the media organisation.

“The media play and important role of promoting and disseminating information on what JPAM is all about. We look forward to similar cooperation in the future,” he said.