KUALA LUMPUR, May 12 — The Royal Malaysia Police’s agreement to independent oversight will contribute significantly to the restoration of Malaysians’ confidence in the law enforcement agency, said the G25 group.
Congratulating new Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Abdul Hamid Bador on securing his agency’s acceptance of the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC), the group also said the move would benefit Malaysia’s global standing.
“By stepping forward to support this important institutional reform, the IGP has given New Malaysia a shot in the arm. We believe that with the IPCMC, Malaysia will no longer be viewed as a police state.
“It will instead be viewed favourably for its transparency and accountability, giving our country a good name,” the group said in a statement.
It added the commission would also benefit the RMP whose standing the group said has been battered by issues such as custodial deaths, the Wang Kelian people smuggling scandal, and corruption.
The police have also been suspected of collusion with religious authorities to silence dissenters and engage in moral policing, all of which the G25 said has fuelled negative views of the police as impartial in the “politics of race, religion and royalty.”
It also expressed confidence that those eventually chosen to serve on the commission would be honourable and not engage in witch hunts among the police force.
“We are now in New Malaysia. We look forward to the IGP leading the police in making our hopes for a better country come true, by giving his full support for the functioning of the IPCMC.”
On Friday, the IGP disclosed that the police were now agreeable to the IPCMC.
The IPCMC is a police oversight body first proposed by a Royal Commission of Inquiry to improve the police force in 2005, following a spate of deaths in custody.
The establishment of the IPCMC was among the pledges in Pakatan Harapan’s manifesto for the 14th general election.
