"GOLD standard - that is the quality of Singapore's security system, said well-known terrorism expert Rohan Gunaratna of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS).
"However, there is no perfect system in the world. Any system can be breached, as there will be technical gaps and human errors," the professor told my paper.
Prof Gunaratna, who heads RSIS' International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research, was speaking in the wake of the recent arrest of Mas Selamat Kastari, the leader of the Singapore branch of Jemaah Islamiah (JI).
The terrorist shocked Singapore by escaping from the Whitley Road Detention Centre last February. He was arrested in Malaysia over a month ago.
A credible tip from Singapore's Internal Security Department on the location of Mas Selamat aided in his arrest.
But, if Singapore's security is so good, how could Mas Selamat have escaped through an open window in the first place?
"He was very determined, so when he saw a small window of opportunity to escape, he exploited it," said Prof Gunaratna, saying the Government had underestimated him in the past.
Since then, the Government has been constantly identifying and plugging "gaps" in its security system, he said.
