KOTA KINABALU: Sea gypsies have to want to settle down before they can be assisted, said Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan.
Jeffrey, who leads the special committee for the state's digital registration of foreigners, said the sea gypsies should be registered.
"They should be recognised as individuals and organised as communities. They have special skills in the sea and that should be further developed.
"I don't know whether they will learn how to settle down, but as long as they are nomads and gypsies of the sea, they move around, so it's difficult to assist them. So, they have to settle down and they have to be connected to a specific place of abode.
"And then they can be considered as part of the community, the Malaysian community. That is the only way to resolve it," he told reporters after the "Protecting Semporna's Marine Environment Plastic Pollution and Fish Bombing" convention at the Sabah International Convention Centre here.
Jeffrey, who is also state Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry minister, said the nomadic sea gypsies, who rely heavily on marine resources for their livelihood, were required to be managed by various stakeholders at all levels.
Admitting that issues related to sea gypsies were complicated, he said the group does not belong to the category of illegal immigrants without documents.
"So, this should not be politicised. But they have to make the decision. I am for them. We need to find a solution."
As for the digital exercise registration for foreigners, Jeffrey said the task force had collected data on workers from the plantation sector and would extend the registration exercise to the services sector.
Despite wanting to complete the registration exercise as soon as possible, he said that there was a manpower shortage.
The deputy chief minister also warned that those to be registered should not be hauled up for prosecution to encourage voluntary participation.
In April, it was reported that the programme had recorded data from 39,276 foreigners in Sabah since its implementation in September 2022.