A parliamentary roundtable of Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat MPs, NGOs, civic organisations and stakeholders will be convened in a fortnight on whether Malaysia should have a new Inspector-General of Police to provide new leadership to roll back the tide of crime in the last five years and present a new image of democratic policing as well as who among the serving top police officers should be handed the baton of IGP.
To lobby for a second renewal of his term as IGP, Tan Sri Musa Hassan is now talking about the police giving priority to stamping out street crimes, when he should be explaining what success he had done as IGP since his first appointment in September 2006 as well as his two-year extension from September 2007 in rolling back the tide of crime, especially street crimes, in the country!
In fact, street crimes became worse in the nation’s history during Musa’s tenure as IGP in the past three years and on each of the three core functions which the Dzaiddin Police Royal Commission had outlined as the priority tasks of the police force – to keep crime low, eradicate corruption and uphold human rights – Musa failed in everyone of them!
When Musa was first appointed IGP, I publicly congratulated him in a statement dated 8th September 2006, stressing that “the question uppermost for Malaysians is whether Musa’s promotion would make any difference in the law-and-order situation in the country – whether they can look forward to a safe and low-crime Malaysia, which must be regarded as the most fundamental of all human rights of Malaysians but which will also affect Malaysia as a investment centre, tourist destination and international educational hub for foreign students”.
When Musa was given a two-year extension as IGP on the expiry of his term in September 2007, Musa declared that he would make the criminals “fear the police, every second of their lives”.
Musa failed miserably on both scores, as today, it is not the criminals who fear the police “every second of their lives” but in many instances, the other way round.
As the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein and the Police Force Commission had given their backing for Musa’s second extension as IGP, have they considered Musa’s failed KPIs in fighting crime, with the crime and the fear of crime situation worse than the pre-Dzaiddin Police Royal Commission period before 2004 although police pay rise had since increased by some 50% with the trebling of police allocations to RM8 billion under the Ninth Malaysia Plan as compared to the previous Eighth Malaysia Plan?
The crime situation became so bad under his tenure as IGP that it was not only the ordinary Malaysians who felt unsafe whether in the streets, public places or the privacy of their homes, even serving and former top police officers became victims of crime – like the former Inspector-General of Police, Tun Haniff Omar and the former Penang Chief Police Officer, Datuk Albert Mah who was killed in his Petaling Jaya home in an armed robbery both in 2007,as well as the unprecedented cases of the Johore Baru South OCPD Asst Comm Zainuddin Yaakob tied up and robbed at knifepoint in his house in Johore Baru in May 2009 and the Tawau acting OCPD Supt Ramli Ali Mat who was stabbed in his house in Tawau in a burglary attack by five men in January this year.
The time has come for full national consultation and discussion on the police force the country needs 52 years after nationhood, whether Musa’s renewal for another term as IGP going into the fourth and fifth year as the No. 1 top police officer in the land is the answer to the problem of endemic crime as well as a police force capable of understanding the modern concepts of Democratic Policing.
Furthermore, whether there is none among the serving top police officers who could be handed the baton of Inspector General of Police.
Those who are interested in attending the Parliamentary Roundtable on whether Musa should have his term as IGP extended further or whether the country needs a new IGP from among the current crop of top police officers should contact their respective MPs for further details.
Dont know about you guys. Me an ordinary man on the street am afraid of both police and criminals to like degree. I have been frank with my kids. I told them not to trust strangers and police. The nototious gun weilding rolex robber was caught sometime ago and I heard he was released soon after. I bet nothing more happened to him. In other words he is amongst us now together with the rest of the thieves, murderers, rapists etc. At least our streets of free of people who hold candles.
If one cannot perform his duties to the satisfaction and aspirations of the rakyat and the nation, then there’s only one way out : just leave. There are no two ways about it.
No one in the civil service is indispensable. A replacement in the hierarchy of the PDRM is warranted and necessary to address and solve the increasing crime rate in the country.
Did KTK give his KPI report on the IGP to Krismuddin ? Why is it,he still recommended MH to be re-appointed as IGP for another term ? The record and report of the failure (lowering the crime rate) by the present IGP speak for itself and didn’t Krismuddin look at it ?.I am wondering whether this parliamentary roundtable talk or discussion on the subject of recommending a new IGP to be appointed has any teeth.I hope it’s not the prerogative of the prime minister to choose whoever he wishes.Hey guys,besides choosing the ministers and the date to desolve parliament,what else the prime minister has as his prerogative ?.
Hi LKS,
Today the image of PDRM is very, very poor in the public perception. Instead of focusing on crime busting, upholding justice and protecting the Rakyat without any discrimination they are doing otherwise. Not only to say they are a big even brutal bully and are very biased pro-UMNO and shoes polishers of PM, DPM and HM, there are many cases of corruption and injustice within the force (very few dare to expose them out of the fear of their and their families lives) and they do not know how to take pro-active actions to prevent and reduce crimes. Although it is not surprising but it very disheartening and disturbing that crime rate is on the rise.
I fear not only the robbers but them also. Many friends and colleagues too have the like view of them. In fact starting from the very top, PDRM need to be revamped, re-trained and monitored to get them back to the right focus and objectives.
Conclusion:
The present old IGP need to go. It is insensitive and very foolish and to extend and extend again his term. Those who supported his extension have dark ulterior motives.
I don’t think a new IGP will help if the global consensus in BN is the same. Look at the MAS scandal and what did Badawi do? No Further Action after a lengthy investigation was conducted to nail Tajuddin Ramli.
How many PMs from BN did we change? Any change for the better? No.
They are all the same. The fact of the matter is changing the IGP is as good as replacing one clown with another clown: And that is like fishing from the same small pond. It makes not a difference. Crime will continue to escalate in accordance with existing trend and pace. We need an independant body to check on the police and their work culture and integrity and on their performance.
I think the IGP should be changed, if only to establish performance-related retirement as a phenomenon in the minds of senior public servants. There’s a slim chance it might improve matters in the police force, but I think it all depends on who the replacement is. If you get a brave officer that’s not afraid to push his force in the direction of “best practice”, wah, that would be marvellous! And extremely unlikely.
Of course there should be a new IGP. It is not fair to those in line and it looks they are going to retire before they are given a shot at the title. But why should they replace this IGP just because you think he should be replaced??
Whether the present IGP Tan Sri Musa Hassan should be replaced with another top police officer will depend on whether the prospective replacement of the IGP post can be someone who is much more human-rights-conscious and much more efficient in carrying out the official duty as the IGP. If Musa Hassan has to be replaced with either the present State Police Chief of Selangor or of Perak, then I think I would rather choose not to trust the Police anymore!