As a student, I felt extreme grief and disturbed with the recent report of the death of a Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Utar) student.

As a freshman, fate had robbed her of any dreams and hopes she may had had. All these vanished along with her last breath, and the suspicion that she may had been violated before being strangled makes this even more revolting.

What has the world become? Just browse through any newspaper available and without fail, we are flooded with news of horror and terror, painting gruesome pictures on our mind. Such news has disturbingly become a norm in our society, but is this how we are meant to live - in fear of everyone around us and constantly feeling helpless? The likes of modern-day monsters are no longer those of Dracula and Frankenstein, but that of us.

Not forgetting to mention the recent case of the police force unwilling to help a couple under attack which really made one wonder, "Who can I trust? Who can I turn to if I'm being attacked or if I see others being attacked?" The response time of the security force is also appalling. My statements of course are not directed to every working officer because I do believe that there are many hard working and responsible groups, but it is no exaggeration when I say that there seems to be a level of incompetence.

I have no grounds to comment on what factors may had lead to the incompetent level of the workforce as I have no solid evidence, however, there are quite a few things to point out with what I have seen in the newspapers and heard from close associates. A friend, having lived in a neighbouring country, has commented that it seems hard to spot any police in the streets of Malaysia (aside from traffic officers and of those opening spaces for VIPs in traffic jams), in comparison to this neighbouring country where police cars are often spotted doing patrols.

I personally believe that the presence of police officers may make a huge impact in security; they do not really need to do anything, since their presence should suppress many troublemakers from executing their unlawful plans.

The police force should prove this common view wrong by being constantly active in all parts of security matters, and not to only patrol when a crime or murder has already taken place, and then to only disappear two weeks after.

If other countries which Malaysia is competing against can do this, I do not see why Malaysia cannot achieve a higher level of security given our advancement. I understand that it is not an easy task, but from what I and many other people have seen, there is much more that the Malaysian security force can do; it is not a problem of capability, but that of attitude. It is an effort we must put in, for the benefit of everyone.