YOURSAY 'We are not demoralising the entire police force. We are however whacking the IGP and the home minister for having wrong priorities.'

My men are just like detainees, says deputy IGP

Quigonbond: Deputy inspector-general of police Mohd Bakri Mohd Zinin, are you saying that since your men are like detainees, they have the temerity to behave like other inmates, including taking law into their own hands in the lock-ups?

If you really care about the welfare of your fellow officers, you should not have accepted your promotion into higher office in protest of how the BN administration have treated the police.

Your immediate action would have forced the cabinet and the home minister to strengthen police career development, improve training and come out with a new salary scheme. Instead, you help the home minister abuse the law by going after his political opponents.

Indeed, in developed countries, law enforcement is a professional, dignified job which only the good ones are recruited.

By the way, we are not demoralising the entire police force. We are however whacking the IGP and the home minister for having wrong priorities, and giving one poor excuse after another for the things that have gone wrong within the force.

The junior police officers are entitled to have a leader that they can look up to and be proud off. If you dare, you should conduct an anonymous survey within the police force whether they think the current IGP is up for the job.

Holden: Deputy IGP, you're right about the negative public perception of the police. But isn't this is due to the many high-profile cases of abuse that has gone on for a very long time in police lock-ups?

Isn't it due to the fact that the authorities have failed to act on complaints and concerns expressed by members of the public? Isn't this due to members of the force issuing statements to the public that were found to be less than truthful?

LogicalMalaysian: For a few bad apples, we cannot tarnish the whole police force. Lest we forget the many good cops who have been society's guardians and it is also sad that they are not paid well enough.

Many of the police officers we meet are like most of us, struggling for a living. The best way for the deputy IGP to revive the good name of the force is to weed out the bad apples and stop making rash and hasty statements, especially before investigations and post-mortems are complete.

To the most of the good ones, we salute you.

Gods Messenger: Mr DIGP, I am sure you will agree there are bad apples who tarnish the good name of the force and therefore, the good apples are not spared.

I appreciate your views and comments but the men have taken oath to serve and they must follow the SOP (standard operating procedure) set forth in the station.

If they cannot follow instruction this is not the place for them. If they can't follow SOP then it's insubordination and should be reprimanded and recommended for discharge.

The police force in the 60s was respected and very competent in service but not these days. So you better do something to make the force a better place for the next generation who want to join the force.

Southpaw: If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen - it's as simple as that. Similarly, if you have no control over your men, Bakri, perhaps you should take the natural route - resign from the police force; stop whining as no one is stopping you.

I'm sure there are people in the force who are more capable than you.

Pemerhati: This is what blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin wrote in one of his columns, "Bakri Zinin ... says that the Malaysian police do not go around beating up people.

"That is utter bullshit. Bakri personally beat me up in the Dang Wangi police station on Hari Raya Haji Day of March 2001. And he did this in front of my wife plus about 20 other people.

"I, in fact, made a police report about this incident that very same night but they ignored my police report."

There were about 20 witnesses to the crime committed by Bakri but no action was taken despite a police report being made on the incident.

This incident is a clear illustration of what Bakri means when he says, "Our men uphold our integrity and they are definitely an asset to the public ... one can't deny that."

To be fair, there probably are many decent and able public servants but they will not be put in top positions as they will not do the dirty work of this illegitimate government.

It is people like Bakri, attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail and Election Commission chief Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof who will hold the top posts.

Abasir: The police should be demoralised and rightly so. When they have killers in their midst and the killings continue unabated, they should be demoralised.

They should also be demoralised when they see how biased the force has become led by an ‘Umnoised' IGP and his team of incompetent order takers.

If they are not demoralised, they are part of the problem and not the solution.

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