Phang: Crime reduced once new IGP took over

Prominent crime prevention advocate Robert Phang said police statistics have shown that crime had reduced sharply since Ismail Omar took reigns as national police chief.

Phang said there is a downtrend since Musa Hassan retired as inspector-general of police in September 2010, despite public perception believing otherwise.

“I am not making any personal attacks. However, from 2006 to 2010, you would be able to identify that when Musa was the IGP, it coincides with a surge in the crime rate,” he said.

Phang, an executive council member of the Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF), said this at his press conference to explain how public perception of rising crime rates were inaccurate.

 “The perception among the rakyat is that the crime rate has increased. While this is a valid view, it is also true that the number of crimes throughout the country has decreased,” he said.

A recent wave of attacks on women at carparks in several major shopping centres around the Klang Valley has reignited public debate over the prevalence of crime.

The controversy was fuelled further by recent erroneous Home Ministry data which claimed that there was a drop in crime rate in Selangor, which critics argued was not reflective of the actual situation.

Citizens must take action

Asked to comment on this, Phang said it was important for the authorities to provide accurate data as revising it later would affect their credibility.

Meanwhile, Phang called upon political parties to not sensationalise crime rate data, as it may cause unnecessary negative public perception.

Instead of finger pointing, Phang urged citizens to be vigilant and participate more in community-based efforts to eradicate crime.

He said there was a need for more dialogue between citizens and local bodies such as Pemandu and the MCPF.

“We encourage citizens to have open dialogues and discussions with us. Without the input of citizens, the police cannot perform its function effectively.

“Do not always depend on the police. The rakyat must come forward.”, he said.