LETTER | Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) reiterates our call to scrap the government’s proposal for the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) and consequently for the enactment of the Independent Police Complaints and Monitoring Commission (IPCMC).

As recent as earlier this month we have yet again been served with another report of a death in custody, and the Rakyat are still waiting for closure and accountability for the mass graves in Wan Kelian where an RCI was done but until today we have not heard of the findings.

“The government is strongly advised to disclose this report to the public to demonstrate its commitment to transparency and good governance,” said Muhammad Mohan, President of TI-Malaysia.

However, in Parliament, the government under the leadership of PM Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri, who commands the confidence of the opposition bloc, is determined to bulldoze a watered-down IPCC Bill, much to the dismay of civil society, families of victims of deaths in custody, parliamentarians and fellow Malaysians.

If Police misconduct and involvement in organised crime cannot be curbed and controlled by the IGP, JIPS and the Police Force Commission; then the system of self-regulation is clearly flawed, as pointed out by Civil Society and experts, for decades. The IPCMC was mooted by the Royal Commission to Enhance the Operation and Management of the Royal Malaysian Police, headed by former Chief Justice Mohamed Dzaiddin Haji Abdullah in 2005.

The purpose of the IPCMC was to improve oversight and to allow independent investigation and punishment for errant, abusive and corrupt officers across the rank and file. 

The Pakatan Harapan government promised to enact the IPCMC but instead introduced a watered-down version of it with the same name. 

Several months later, the Perikatan Nasional government made a U-turn and withdrew the IPCMC bill and mooted an Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) which not only had fewer powers but referred all findings back to the Police Force Commission (PFC)- for them to decide If and Whether any action will be taken by the PFC on their colleagues in PDRM. 

Another glaring difference of the IPCC Act is that it blatantly allowed members of PDRM to be appointed as staff and commission members of the IPCC – this would mean that PDRM officers will both be in the IPCC investigating police misconduct, and in the PFC, reviewing the investigation findings, regarding their police colleagues. dealing with the law. 

Furthermore clean and conscientious whistleblowers should feel safe, protected and supported, to tell the truth. The IPCMC is empowered to make changes that both penalise corrupt officers and improve the welfare of other officers. 

The draft Act has been ready for more than a decade, an entire nation is yearning for integrity; what is lacking is political will.

IPCMC now! 

Dr Muhammad Mohan is the president of Transparency International – Malaysia.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.