A group of pro-Barisan Nasional NGOs as well as the Sabah Pekembar (UMNO) Supporters Club and UMNO Malaysia Activists Club today lodged a police report over an allegedly defamatory article published in the DAP Roketkini portal.

The president of the group, Zulkarnain Mahdar, said the article pertaining to officers of the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) published by the portal on May 28 was defamatory of a government agency.

He said the allegation made in the article was baseless and without solid evidence and had raised a negative perception among the people in the state.

"It must be remembered that Esscom is a government agency and its staff are public servants. If there are irregularities, we have places where complaints can be lodged, such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC)," he told reporters after making the report at the Kota Kinabalu police headquarters here.

He said the group challenged Kota Kinabalu MP Jimmy Wong to lodge a report with the MACC on the allegation contained in the article.

Zulkarnain said that Wong, who is also Sabah DAP chairman, had implied in the article that Esscom officers played truant instead of discharging their duties.

He said Wong, as a citizen of Sabah, should instead give ideas as to how to check intrusions into the state and extend support so that security assets could be sent speedily to the Esscom areas.