EXCLUSIVE
PETALING JAYA: There is a small segment of the police force that is delinquent, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) has admitted.
He said only about 2% of the police force have been found to have committed wrongdoings last year. Nevertheless, with a 137,000-strong police force, that means about 2,740 personnel have been found to be rogue.
Tan Sri Razarudin Husain (pic), exasperated and concerned over the bad press the police have received recently, is telling his officers to carry out their duties honourably to earn the trust and confidence of the public.
“I urge personnel, especially frontliners, who carry out their duties with integrity to elevate the image of the police force. Serve the public with integrity, this is all I ask,” he said.
Razarudin said that apart from disciplinary action including pay cuts, demotions, suspensions and dismissals over various wrongdoings, several police officers were also charged in court for committing serious crimes.
“It is this small percentage of cops who bring ill-repute and tarnish the image the police force.
These wrong-doers will face severe consequences. No crooked cop will be tolerated or spared from stern action.
“If their supervisors or station heads are found to be incompetent, then we will transfer them out and replace them with capable officers,” Razarudin told The Star.
He said the police Integrity and Standard Compliance Department (JIPS) would continue to weed out delinquent personnel.
Over the past month, rogue cops have left the police top brass red-faced after running foul of the law.
On Sunday, a police station chief from Johor was caught on video assaulting a man at an undisclosed location. Johor police said the man was also transferred to the Batu Pahat police headquarters while he awaits the outcome of investigations.
On Wednesday, two Ampang Jaya policemen were arrested for allegedly raping a foreign student and robbing her male friend in Bukit Ampang View in Ampang Jaya.
On Jan 4, four policemen from Kuala Lumpur were held for allegedly extorting RM10,000 from a man in Kepong.
Another six policemen attached to the Brickfields district police headquarters were arrested at a house in Taman Tan Yew Lai on the same day for allegedly processing ketum leaves for distribution and their own consumption.
Last month, three policemen who were part of a raiding party of a major operation against illegal immigrants at Jalan Silang on Dec 22 were arrested for stealing RM85,000 from a store.
On Dec 19, senior cop Deputy Supt Mohd Nazri Abdul Razak, 44, was charged with murder in Ipoh for allegedly crashing his car into a 17-year-old student and causing his death four days earlier.
Razarudin said daily reminders to stay away from undesirable acts are issued to frontline personnel who perform patrol duties or crime prevention rounds.
“They are constantly checked by their supervisors. They are reminded of their responsibility and to stay away from all wrongdoings in their daily briefings too. All rules, the dos and don’ts are all in place and we regularly improve these measures.
“However, despite drumming all these good values and advice into them, there are recalcitrant personnel who are defiant and choose to be involved in such acts.
“I can only say that it just boils down to one’s character and principles. If a person has evil intentions, no morals, no fear of God and the law, he will commit such acts,” he warned
Penang police chief Mohd Shuhaily appointed new KL top cop as Bukit Aman CID director followed rigorous selection proc process
Newly- appointed CID director who exposed the state of decay in the ranks has given a clear warning to cops on the payroll of criminal syndicates.
THE rot in our police force is far worse than imagined but there is a glimmer of hope: It is no longer being swept under the carpet.
The head of Bukit Aman’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain, has pledged this in no uncertain terms.
At a meeting in Penang on Friday, which was supposed to be a welcoming mandate ceremony for him as the newly promoted director, he stunned the 130 state and district CID chiefs with the brutal expose of the decay in the system.
Comm Shuhaily, the former KL police chief, was blunt in his warning to corrupt officers working in cahoots with criminal rackets. His notice to them: “Change or be changed.”
“You’re willing to sacrifice the lives of your comrades because of the money you get from syndicates. In other words, there are some here who are willing to kill each other for money,” the CID director said during the closeddoor conference.
The video footage of his speech was posted online and has since gone viral.
Comm Shuhaily said the venality and corruption in the system has remained unchecked because there is no supervision, especially in monitoring the lifestyles of officers and lower ranking police personnel.
For example, he questioned how it is possible for a sergeant to buy a Toyota Alphard, Vellfire, or a Mercedes with money earned only from his salary.
(A police sergeant comes under Grade YA5, for which the minimum salary is RM1,824 with the maximum of RM5,801. The base model of Toyota Alphard costs RM464,000. With a year’s insurance of RM14,366 and road tax of RM4,182, the on-the-road price of the vehicle is a whopping RM482,548. Reconditioned models a few years older cost about RM40,000 to RM50,000 less.)
“Have their superiors ever asked how they could afford such luxury vehicles based on the salaries they earn, or whether they have declared their assets? This is all part of existing police task force directives,” he said.
Comm Shuhaily said the supervising officers were not just negligent in motoring junior officers but were also directly involved by being on the criminal syndicates’ payroll.
“Some are equally bad. They go and buy these luxury cars together with their sergeants and even pick out the registration plate numbers together. Isn’t this what’s happening?” he said, underscoring the state of corruption in the force.
Addressing those in the meeting who had not met the basic requirements of their responsibilities, he said they would be removed from the CID and barred from holding any higher rank.
Citing the observation of the late former IGP Tan Sri Mohd Bakri Omar, who served from 2003 to 2006, he said most officers were “promoted to the level of incompetence”.
“They make wrong decisions or dare not decide nor give directives when needed. They play safe all the time to get their positions. They are only clever at PR.”
Describing irresponsible officers and those who work with criminal rackets for monthly payments as “traitors”, he said they were not fit to talk about defending the country, race or religion.
Comm Shuhaily said he expected everyone in the CID, from officers in the Bukit Aman HQ to personnel in stations across the country, to stop associating with criminal syndicates.
Although there is cynicism in the ranks over the CID director’s admonition, likening it to the adage of “A new broom sweeps clean”, Malaysians have largely welcomed the man’s trenchant warning against police misconduct.
But in all honesty, what are the chances of our police force being cleansed under the existing laws to check abuses and accountability?
It won’t happen with the Independent Police Conduct
Commission (IPCC) Act 2020, which has been described as “toothless” by human rights and civil society groups.
The IPCC, which only came into force this July after being passed three years ago, does not have the key ingredient for it to be effective: authority to discipline.
This lame piece of legislation has also weakened the scant police oversight provided under the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC). The IPCC does not even include search and investigation powers provided under the EAIC.
The IPCC has no powers to act against police officers found guilty of wrongdoing. It can only recommend proposed actions to the Police Force Commission or other appropriate authorities.
It is a poor substitute for the original Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC), first mooted in 2005 as part of 125 recommendations by the Royal Commission to Enhance the Operation and Management of the Royal Malaysia Police.
Members of the commission included prominent figures such as a former IGP, representatives of the police force and the Retired Senior Police Officers’ Association of Malaysia, among others.
The establishment of the IPCMC to probe cases of police abuse and to discipline culprits responsible was among the commission’s main recommendations.
Although a proposed Bill was drafted as part of the report, resistance from within the police force was too strong for it to make any headway.
In July 2019, the then ruling Pakatan Harapan coalition, tabled its IPCMC Bill, which was criticised as a gross disappointment from what was initially proposed by the commission.
But the IPCMC Act was stymied when the Pakatan government collapsed in February 2020 with the crossing over of many of its MPS in the wake of the “Sheraton Move”.
Among all forms of corruption, it is graft within the police force which hurts a country the most. In Malaysia, it has come to a level where corrupt officers are in the pockets of criminal rackets.
Meaningful reform cannot take place if the cops are allowed to continue investigating misconduct cases involving their own. Or if corrupt officers are only given slaps on wrists by being transferred out or barred from promotion.
The only viable solution to cleanse the much-marred image of our police force is to set up the IPCMC as it was first proposed 18 years ago. It is still not too late to do so.
- Media consultant M. Veera Pandiyan likes this quote by a US Chief Justice, Earl Warren: “The police must obey the law while enforcing the law.” The views expressed here are entirely the writer’s own.
KUALA LUMPUR: Comm Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain says he was pleasantly surprised by the overwhelming response from the public following the video of his recent address to CID officers.
The Bukit Aman CID director said it showed that the public knew about the state of the police, and that it was an "open secret".
"I firmly believe if we are plagued by disease, we must first admit it.
"If we don't, then the doctor could not administer the right cure or medicine," he told a press conference in Bukit Aman on Wednesday (Oct 11).
He was commenting on the recent videos of his address to CID officers, where he was hard hitting, including highlighting wrongdoings of some officers.
"What I did is just amplifying what the IGP and Deputy IGP have been saying in wanting to clean up the police force.
"They have been saying it, I merely amplify it," he lamented.
Comm Mohd Shuhaily said as an initial move, all CID officers holding sensitive positions, including district CID chiefs and D7 (Secret Societies, Gambling and Vice Division), have to declare their assets, and must be transparent and comprehensive.
"If someone is able and can afford a certain lifestyle, they must show they have legitimate sources of income.
"We will conduct continuous auditing to ensure high integrity among CID officers," he said.
Comm Mohd Shuhaily also said applications for sensitive positions in the department were also open.
"We will issue the offer to any officer or personnel.
"They must send their application letter along with forms declaring their assets," he said, emphasising that his address was a call for his officers to change.
"Whatever we do, it will have a reaction, be it positive or negative.
"However, the overall reaction by the public has been positive, but we need the public to help us.
"Change belongs to you," said Comm Mohd Shuhaily, who added the reason the video was disseminated was so that it could reach a wider audience.
"During the address, I could only address 140 officers present at the venue, whereas I have 10,000 officers and personnel in the department," he said.
