KUALA KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 1 — Police freed today Penang executive councillor Phee Boon Poh but nabbed the DAP lawmaker colleague, RSN Rayer, moments later for questioning over the latter’s alleged links to the controversial Penang Volunteer Patrol Unit (PPS).

Northeast district police chief Mior Faridalatrash confirmed that the police had released Phee and detained Rayer at about 6pm, in front of the George Town district police headquarters.

“Phee is free,” the assistant police commissioner told Malay Mail Online when contacted, before adding ““YB Rayer was detained to assist in investigations”.

Rayer, who is Seri Delima assemblyman and a lawyer, was on standby earlier to provide legal aid to PPS members arrested yesterday.

Rayer is the second state lawmaker to be arrested over the PPS controversy.

Phee, who is also the state executive councillor in charge of PPS, was detained not long after the initial crackdown yesterday and was held overnight.

Mior said Rayer was arrested because he is believed to be an office bearer in the PPS, which was declared illegal last week by Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar.

The controversial volunteer unit was formed in 2011 after Pakatan Rakyat took power but the policeman told Malay Mail Online when asked, that Penang Chief Minister would not be arrested for his tie to the corp.

The police rounded up 155 people yesterday for questioning over their involvement in PPS.

Lim was at the George Town police headquarters to meet Phee after the Sungai Puyu assemblyman was released on bail, and said police confirmed that Rayer was detained under Section 43 of the Societies Act 1966.

File picture shows Seri Delima assemblyman RSN Rayer coming out from the George Town district police headquarters. ― Picture by K.E. Ooi

The chief minister said Rayer, who will be represented by lawyer Ramkarpal Singh, will spend the night at the station and will have his statement recorded “later”.

“Clearly this is based on orders from the top... not from Penang, but no one else but the IGP,” Lim said in a video posted on YouTube by the Penang Buletin.

On August 27, Rayer was charged on two separate counts of using seditious words to describe Umno on two separate occasions last May.

He was first charged for uttering the allegedly seditious words “celaka, celaka, celaka Umno” in the Penang state legislative assembly at 9.19am on May 20.

The Malay word “celaka” translates as “damn” in English.

Rayer was then hauled off to a second courtroom where he was accused of uttering the allegedly seditious words, “ini Umno memang celaka”, at a speech at a park in Island Glades at about 10pm on May 22.

Khalid announced last week that the PPS was being investigated under Section 41 of the Societies Act as it was not registered under the Registrar of Societies (RoS).

The police claimed only the federal government has the jurisdiction to establish such an organisation.

The announcement came after a 51-year-old man lodged a police report claiming that he was beaten up by PPS members.

The claim prompted Barisan Nasional leaders to demand for the unit to be disbanded, while Malay rights group Perkasa lodged police reports urging for a prove into the unit’s activities.

PPS was formed by the state government in May 2011 to assist the public in all situations including directing traffic, in times of disaster and to patrol the streets as a preventive measure against crime.

Currently, there are more than 9,000 PPS members in the state and the members have all undergone various training courses that include first aid and disaster management.