Sombre curtain closers marking Abdullah’s abysmal failures in police reforms

By Lim Kit Siang

The police used excessive and unnecessary force today, firing tear gas and water cannons, against peaceful protestors gathered to submit a memorandum to the Yang di Pertuan Agong at the Istana Negara opposing the use of English to teach science and mathematics from Standard One.

It is another example of the failure and futility of the blue-ribboned Royal Police Commission set up by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi when he first took office in 2003, and which came out with 125 recommendations to create an efficient, incorruptible, professional, world-class police service with three core functions to reduce crime, eradicate corruption and uphold human rights.

In Abdullah’s last hundred days as the fifth Prime Minister, illustrations galore are being given by the police highlighting the failure and futility of the Royal Police Commission, with a former Chief Justice, Tun Dzaiddin Abdullah in the chair and the country’s most famous and longest serving Inspector-General of Police, Tun Hanif Omar as deputy chairman.

These recent police outrages and scandals include:

• Suspected car-thief A Kugan’s brutal murder while in police custody, with a second autopsy report revealing a major cover-up, involving the police and the Serdang Hospital pathologist, as well as raising serious questions about the responsibility and accountability of the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar and the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Musa Hassan, with shocking evidence that the 22-year-old deceased endured severe beatings and was also starved during his incarceration – while the Serdang Hospital pathologist’s post-mortem report said the cause of death was inconclusive.

• The police harassment Perak Speaker V. Sivakumar and the other 27 Pakatan Rakyat Perak State Assemblymen and women for their historic “raintree” Perak State Assembly in Ipoh on 3rd March 2009, as well as the Perak State Assembly Committee of Privileges members, in violation of the fundamental doctrine of the separation of powers and Article 72(1) of the Malaysian Constitution that “(1) The validity of any proceedings in the Legislative Assembly of any State shall not be questioned in any court” and “ (2) No person shall be liable to any proceedings in any court in respect of anything said or any vote given by him when taking part in proceedings of the Legislative Assembly of any State or of any committee thereof.”

• Breach of Abdullah’s promise to establish the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) to provide an effective external oversight mechanism to prevent police abuses of power and corruption.

These incidents provide somber curtain closers to mark the abysmal failure of Abdullah on police reforms.

Or is Abdullah no more in control of the Malaysian government in his last few weeks as PM?