Cops are sorry actors in 'New Year's Eve chaos' sandiwara

MP SPEAKS The Malaysian police force has presented a sorry spectacle of itself recently, undermining its professional image as an independent, efficient and world-class police force, but what is worse, tarnishing the international image of Malaysia by trumpeting to the world as if Malaysia has become a 'basket case country' on the verge of political and economic collapse.

And the person who led the charge to undermine the professional image of the police and the international image of the country is none other than the country’s No 1 policeman, the inspector-general of police (IGP) Khalid Abu Bakar (right), who shocked the country and the world with the wild and reckless 'fairy tale' two weeks ago of a plot to 'topple the government' on New Year’s Eve.

Neither the IGP nor the police force have been able to produce any evidence of a 'topple government' plot on New Year’s Eve, as Khalid was only acting on a 'hunch' or brainwave (planted or inspired by Umno conspirators), and I cannot think of a more 'anti-national' act than this to end 2013.

Yesterday, the Kuala Lumpur deputy police chief Amar Singh Ishar Singh said that the police had received 588 reports nationwide in protest against the New Year’s Eve rally to 'bring down the government', alleging that four NGOs were out to “create chaos” in Dataran Merdeka and would be bringing various weapons, including grenades and gas mark to stir up a commotion.

My first reaction to the 588 police reports (probably the 600 mark would be crossed by now) is the amount of wasted national energies provoked by the IGP’s 'fairy tale' plot to topple the government - or was this the whole intention of the IGP in the first place?

Are there no better, more useful and productive things for Malaysians to do than to lodge 588, or over 600, police reports on a 'fairy tale' plot? No wonder Malaysia is losing her competitiveness in the global marketplace.

No evidence required

Secondly, the false impression given by the police as if a 'plot to topple the government' with grenades and explosives thrown in could be hatched in Malaysia any minute like a common magic trick - which cannot be good in assuring international community whether investors or visitors about the political and economic stability and direction of the country.

It is not that the police had not come out with such 'cock-and-bull' stories in the past to justify police overreactions, as in the run-up to Bersih 2.0 rally on July 9, 2011, when the police claimed to have found parangs and Molotov cocktails, and the Bersih 3.0 rally on April 28, 2012 which the Prime Minister Najib Razak alleged as a Pakatan Rakyat 'coup d’etat' attempt to overthrow the  BN government.

Or the subsequent acknowledgement by the then Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Nazri Aziz, in Parliament that “salt, water bottles, handphones" were dangerous weapons during Bersih 3.0, capable of “toppling” the elected government of the day!

But should the Malaysian police force continue to be haunted and hounded by such 'imaginary enemies' just to prop up the existing regime against democratic empowerment of the people?

The Malaysian police in the first decade of the 21st century should conduct itself as a mature, efficient, professional and world-class police force fully mindful of its primary task of 'democratic policing' and liberated from the obsession of 'upholding the regime' to oppose democratic change at all costs.

The police have summoned the PKR strategic director Rafizi Ramli for questioning this morning, allegedly over allegations by Umno cybertroopers that he is planning to plant bombs in certain locations in Dataran Merdeka on New Year’s Eve.

These are serious and heinous charges and the police action is utterly ridiculous and outrageous.

This is why I had tweeted this morning that the police should have hauled up the Umno blogger and not be harassing Rafizi as in other countries where there is proper respect for the rule of law, the police would have arrested and prosecuted the Umno blogger if he is unable to produce evidence for such irresponsible and incendiary posting.

In Najib’s 'Malaysia Boleh', however, the victim suffers the double jeopardy of a defamatory and seditious allegation as well as being hauled up by the police to prove his innocence, in blatant disregard of the principles that 'one is innocent until proven guilty' and the person who makes an allegation has the onus to adduce evidence to prove it.

Malaysians love price hikes?

The police should stop harassing Rafizi and should take action against the Umno cybertroopers responsible for the reprehensible posts of lies, hatred and incitement with regard to the New Year’s Eve countdown at Dataran Merdeka.

The Minister for Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism Hassan Malek has said that the failure by Malaysians to officially complain of price increases caused by government measures indicated their approval for the policies.

Hassan cannot be more wrong, ill-advised and misguided.

In the circumstances, the police should not stand in the way of Malaysians who want to peacefully demonstrate their objections and opposition to the pile of price hikes whether sugar, petrol, power, toll or house assessments and the long list of other price hikes to come, so that ministers and  BN leaders have a proper and correct understanding of the real voices and aspirations of ordinary Malaysians on these issues.

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LIM KIT SIANG is DAP parliamentary leader and MP for Gelang Patah