Sarawak politician calls for RCI to be set up to probe allegations of interference in police force
KUCHING, May 3 — Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) president Voon Lee Shan today called for a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to be set up to investigate the allegations of interference in the police force by politicians.
He said the outgoing Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Bador’s allegations needs further investigation.
“The first and foremost thing to do is to restructure the composition of the Police Force Commission (PFC) which at the moment is headed by Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin,” Voon, who was a former police officer before becoming a lawyer and entering politics, said in a statement.
He added the commission has very wide-ranging power over members of the police force.
“The home minister and politicians should not sit in the commission as they can easily interfere or exercise influence on how the police force is run or managed in combating crime and enforcement of the law,” he said, adding that their presence would put pressure on police officers whose promotion and transfer are at their discretion.
Voon said promotion and selection of police officers to be directors at Bukit Aman should be placed under a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) and not under PFC.
However, he said PFC should be empowered to interview and conduct an investigation on the suitability of candidates for promotions or for senior posts.
He added the commission should comprise Members of Parliament from both the government and the Opposition, a representative of the Malaysian Bar, retired senior judges and distinguished personalities in society from Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak.
Voon also called for the establishment of a Police Complaints Commission (PCC) to investigate all improprieties or misconduct of police officers, adding it should have the powers to take disciplinary action and to prosecute the offenders in court.
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