The police lost a key tool in fighting crime when the Emergency Ordinance (EO) was repealed, said Deputy Home Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar.

NONE In an interview with Malay-language daily Sinar Harian , he said police had conducted research which showed a spike in violent crime after the repeal.

However, he stressed that the EO repeal was not the only reason why violent crimes had shot up.

"We realise that we lost a tool, that is the law itself. The EO no longer exists, so we can no longer do what we used to do.

"What is happening now has to do with a loophole in the law. We can arrest small time crooks but their leaders slip free. Police identify them as suspects but have no clear evidence," he said in the interview published in a question-and-answer format today.

He said that evidence against the ringleaders was difficult to gather as no one dared to speak against them to the police, let alone testify in court.

However, he said, the government would not introduce a new law to replicate the EO.

Instead it would look into amending existing laws, like the Prevention of Crime Act 1959 and the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012, after dialogues and forums with stakeholders.

"I believe that the explanations given by the prime minister and home minister are sufficient to convince the rakyat that we need not introduce a new EO," he said.

Gun smuggling a factor

Meanwhile, he said that gun smuggling was also one of the factors for the increase in violent crimes.

However, he said, it was still relatively more difficult to obtain contraband firearms in Malaysia compared to neighbouring countries, where they are likely to have originated.

"Our borders are very long and difficult to protect. Sungai Golok in Kelantan is 95km long, has 150 illegal jetties and 49 of these are operating actively.

"It is likely that they are used in smuggling activities," he said referring to the Kelantan-Thai border.

To combat smuggling along this border, he said, the government had decided to equip Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) complexes there with x-ray machines.

"The Customs Department also agreed to it in order to stop smuggling of firearms. It costs a lot but the government is willing to galvanise its efforts on this with cooperation from others," he said.

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