About a month back (why did I take so long to finally complete the draft of this note before posting...), I came across a letter entitled "Friendly frontliners needed at KLIA" sent to the Editor of The Star by reader G.K. Gill.
I concur with what Mrs Gill had written. Likewise, I shared a similar experience some nine years ago.
My intention to share my personal experience is not to defame any party, but just to share a fact that took place quite some time ago.
First class infrastructure does not guarantee first class service
"I am first-timer"
My pioneer international trip took place in June 2005. Being a first time user of KLIA, I was excited. Please don't get me wrong, as being an ordinary person (I am not a wealthy person), I only travel very very occasionally.
Everything started off pleasantly until I was about to go to the queue to board into the plane. An officer was there checking the passports of passengers. Passengers boarding that flight comprised mostly Japanese, followed by a handful of others including Malaysians.
Politeness is selective
Mister Immigration Officer on-duty appeared very polite to the majority of passengers. He greeted each one of them "good morning" before taking a glance at their respective passports without asking questions.
When I gave him my passport, the demeanor of his face transformed from smiley to stern. There was no greeting whatsoever. Fine, I understand perfectly well the mantra of "mandatory politeness to foreign nationals, but politeness is optional or selective once it comes to your country folk".
It is a fact that in the past, some Malaysians used to go to where I was traveling to under the pretext of being visitors, complete with valid travel documents and return tickets, but ended up remaining there longer than allowed to work illegally. Maybe it's a phenomenon of "nila setitik, rosak susu sebelanga" - a Malay proverb which literally says 'a drop of ultramarine spoils the whole barrel of milk'.
But still, even if you have grounds to suspect (note: suspect, not confirm) someone for possibly being hanky-panky, do you have to show a tight face to that person even before you confirm your speculation?
Mr Immigration officer: "Ni frst time punya passport ke?"
Me: "Ye encik"
(He then took about 5 minutes flipping through every page of my mostly empty passport, still with a stern facial expression)
Mr Immigration officer:"Visa ni you buat kat mana?"
Me: Penang
Mr Immigration officer: "Berapa you bayar untuk buat ni?"
Me: Tak kena bayar... free.
(Mr Immigration officer then returned my passport and left without a word)
While I understand he is merely performing his duty, I wonder about the necessity of having to show an expression that is borderline-hostile, if not truly hostile. If I had been hostile to him first, then I can see why he had to treat me like that. But I was never one, never been arrogant to any public servant whom I have came across all my life.
My visa was genuine alright. Rather than to go through the hassle of going to the embassy to apply for one, I had mine done through a travel agent. My trip was not under any tour group, so I had paid a commission to the agent to have it done.
Those were the days when a visa was mandatory for Malaysians to visit Japan, but it is no longer applicable today. I knew that the visa was issued free-of-charge, or else, I might kena kantoi at the stage of Mr Immigration officer's interrogation. Imagine if I had mistaken the commission paid to the agent as payment to obtain a visa... then Mr Immigration officer would have thought I had "bought" a fake visa.
Conclusion
During the days when my mood was still boiling, I thought of not using KLIA anymore because I hated the rude encounter I came across. First time kan, sure traumatizing. Fortunately the immigration and customs people whom I encountered during my return to KLIA were nice.
