The Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESSCOM) is a

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

n security area that covers 1,400 km of the east coast of

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...

from

Kudat Kudat () is the capital of the Kudat District in the Kudat Division of Sabah, Malaysia. Its population was estimated to be around 29,025 in 2010. It is located on the Kudat Peninsula, about north of Kota Kinabalu, the state capital, and is nea ...

Tawau Tawau (), formerly known as Tawao, is the capital of the Tawau District in Sabah, Malaysia. It is the third-largest city (or town)While Tawau have a population of more than 100,000 of which is considered city elsewhere in the world it is offic ...

. It was announced on 7 March 2013 by

Musa Aman Musa bin Aman (Jawi alphabet, Jawi: موسى بن حاج أمان; born 30 March 1951) is a Malaysian politician who has served as the 11th Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Sabah since January 2025. He served as the 14th Chief Minister of Sabah from M ...

, the Sabah State Chief Minister. Its purpose is to strengthen maritime security in the eastern part of Sabah following the persistent attacks by pirates and militants in the southern Philippines especially after the

2013 Lahad Datu standoff The 2013 Lahad Datu standoff, also known as the Lahad Datu incursion or Operation Daulat (), was a military conflict in Lahad Datu District, Lahad Datu, Malaysia. The conflict began on 11 February, when 235 militants arrived in Lahad Datu by bo ...

, while at the same time ensuring that trade and business activity are not affected. The ESSCOM headquarters and main base is currently located in

Lahad Datu Lahad Datu () is the capital of the Lahad Datu District in the Dent Peninsula on Tawau Division of Sabah, Malaysia. Its population was estimated to be around 27,887 in 2010. The town is surrounded by stretches of cocoa and palm oil plantatio ...

. On 8 July 2014, then-Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak announced the restructuring of the ESSCOM with the setting up of two major components - security and defence management as well as enforcement and public action.

Scope

ESSCOM is the authoritative body that oversees

Eastern Sabah Security Zone The Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSZONE) is a security zone in the Malaysian state of Sabah that was launched by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak on 25 March 2013 following persistent Cross border attacks in Sabah, attacks by pirates and m ...

(ESSZONE), which comprises the districts of Kudat, Kota Marudu, Pitas, Beluran, Sandakan, Kinabatangan, Lahad Datu, Kunak, Semporna and Tawau. The body is chaired by the Chief Minister of Sabah, assisted by a CEO appointed by the government. ESSCOM's primary initiative is the establishment of new police stations to further improve security.

Visits

On 9 June 2014, around 20 students from the

Royal College of Defence Studies The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest leve ...

(RCDS) visited ESSCOM headquarters to know the concept of the security area, particularly its integrated operations involving various agencies as well as procedures in dealing with challenges and issues that arise. The delegation was led by Major General Sir Sebastian John Lechmere Roberts along with other 19 senior military officers and civilians from various countries including

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Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

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and the

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. On 25 August 2016, four Japanese delegates from the Japan Terrorism Prevention Unit also visited ESSCOM.

Director-General

The Director-General of ESSCOM is selected on a rotational basis.
"Beliau berkata, tempoh pelantikan itu adalah selama enam bulan dan ia dilaksanakan secara bergilir-gilir."

References

External links

* {{authority control Federal ministries, departments and agencies of Malaysia Sabah Military of Malaysia Military units and formations established in 2013 2013 establishments in Malaysia Prime Minister's Department (Malaysia)

Scope

Visits

Director-General

See also

References

External links