Patriot empathises with police chief’s dejection over corrupt officers

Patriot lauds Inpector General Hamid Bador’s action against his officers who had tarnished the good name of the police force.

News reports on 16 November had mentioned the inspector general had issued transfer orders for senior officers from three critical departments responsible for investigation and eradication of crimes relating to gangsterism, narcotics, immorality and unlicensed gambling.

The transfer orders are a result and follow-up from the arrests by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission of 10 police officers from Bukit Aman Police HQ in early October. They were alleged to have been involved in shielding the activities of the Macau scam that targeted China citizens. Malaysians were believed to be among the victims of the scam.

The inspector general had on a number of occasions ordered his officers not to indulge in criminal activities or to be seen in association with alleged criminals. Officers arrested appeared to have contravened the orders, and if proven guilty, deserve severe punishment. Needless to say, officers of the law must be exemplars of the highest discipline and nothing less.

This unscrupulous act of the 10 police officers has eroded further public perception of the police. Such bad characters in the force need to be weeded out fast. Officers and ranks within need to cooperate to expose malfeasance among them.

The inspector general’s tenure, which is nearing its end, does not give him enough time to weed out the undesirables. Patriot believes he had tried his best to fulfil the pledge he previously made to cleanse the force of its bad image. But owing to the lure for ill-gotten wealth, those sworn and entrusted to keep the law had failed the him and the nation.

Such failure falls squarely on ministerial responsibility. As the saying goes, a fish rots from the head. All that is needed is for the government leadership to genuinely show zero tolerance for corruption and for those in high office show a good example.

With the inspector general’s retirement drawing near, the burden of weeding out corruption rests heavily on the new leadership of the force. The successor must be an individual who is religiously and morally strong – also, one who does not bend to political pressure or from those very high up, but who would be steadfast in upholding the law and the Constitution without fear or favour.

Retired Brigadier General Dato Mohamed Arshad Raji is president of the National Patriots Association (Patriot)

The views expressed in Aliran's media statements and the NGO statements we have endorsed reflect Aliran's official stand. Views and opinions expressed in other pieces published here do not necessarily reflect Aliran's official position.

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