Media Conference Statement (2) by Lim Kit Siang in Petaling Jaya on Friday, 3^rd July 2009: 

Call on Najib and Hishammuddin to respect public opinion on the need for a new IGP who can translate the Police Royal Commission’s vision of “an efficient, incorruptible, professional world-class police service” into a reality

Yesterday, I said that the country needs a new Inspector-General of Police to provide new leadership and vision to regain public confidence in the ability of the Malaysian police to live up to the benchmarks set by the Police Royal Commission Report in 2005 to be an efficient, incorruptible, professional world-class police service with the three core functions to reduce crime, eradicate corruption and uphold human rights.

Instead, the current IGP, Tan Sri Musa Hassan, is lobbying support for another renewal of his term as the No. 1 police officer of the land instead of gracefully allowing a new IGP to take over the Malaysian police force.

No Minister or MP disputed me when I said in Parliament earlier this week that it is easy to give more than a hundred reasons why the country needs a new IGP and why Musa should not succeed in his lobby to get another term of renewal as IGP.

Foremost among the reasons, undoubtedly, is the burial of the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) proposal, the key recommendation of the Police Royal Commission set up by former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to create a people-friendly and effective police force to keep crime low, clean-up corruption and protect human rights.

The funeral rites for the IPCMC were performed when Parliament passed the Enforcement Agencies Integrity Commission (SIAP) Bill on Tuesday – creating a completely diluted, powerless and visionless Commission as far as creating a world-class police force is concerned.

The call for a new IGP to lead a completely make-over of the police, whether in terms of effectiveness in fighting crime or its public image as a friend and protector of the people, has struck great resonance from the people.

One visitor to my blog, for instance, has volunteered 12 “not exhaustive” reasons why there should be a new IGP, viz:

1. Imagine an OCPD shouting through a loud hailer, 1, 2, 3, tangkap, tangkap, tangkap.
2. Storming the Perak State Assembly with firearms and dragging (Perak Speaker) Sivakumar like an animal out of the assembly hall and illegally detaining him for more than an hour.
3. Attending Fathers’ Day Dinner without invitation and bringing along 2 water cannon water trucks.
4. Arresting lawyers who act for their clients.
5. Arresting people wearing black attires.
6. Arresting people holding a birthday party.
7. Arresting people holding and presenting birthday cake.
8. Not allow to direct traffic.
9. Lighting candles.
10. Arresting people attending Hari Raya Puasa open house.
11. Arresting elected representatives who attend to the people in time of need.
12. Creating unnecessary roadblocks causing traffic jams.

I call on the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein to seek and respect public opinion on the need for a new IGP to translate the Police Royal Commission’s vision of “an efficient, incorruptible, professional world-class police service” into reality.

*Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary leader & MP for Ipoh Timor