The country's "sleepy", "faint-hearted" and "only human" police were blushing again today after a third breakout of prisoners in a month.

They were derided as "faint-hearted" by a local newspaper when some 150 out of 200 Africans detained in a crime swoop escaped in February, apparently because the police were intimidated by their size.

They were defended as probably "overcome by fatigue and sleepiness" by the deputy Home Affairs minister when 11 prisoners ripped open the zinc roof of their cells with their bare hands last Saturday and disappeared.

And an official police spokesman politely told AFP today they were "human beings who make mistakes" after two prisoners escaped through a hole in the ceiling of their cell on Monday.

"The public is free to say what they want," the police spokesman said.

They are. A quick street survey by the Malay Mail newspaper elicited a series of robust responses from the members of the public, including one man who asked: "Why bother locking them up. Might as well give them the keys."