COMMENT | The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Home Affairs Ahmad Zahid Hamidi thinks that the Malaysian police are the best in the Asean region, based on a recent finding.

However, he refused to name the organisation that came out with this finding, and furthermore, did not disclose the rationale behind this. He regretted that despite the good performance of the Malaysian police, only 20 percent of the public think that the police are doing a  good job.

Of all the persons, Zahid should know why the public perception of police's performance is pretty low. It is not a mere subjective perception of the police force, but rather how the police perform their duties towards the general public.

Compared to the last few decades, members of the police force are better educated and more aware of things. They undergo periodic courses to equip themselves with knowledge on how to serve the public, how to stem the tide of corruption, how to treat prisoners in their lockups and most importantly, how to enhance the international image of the country's police force.

The question is: whether the police force is doing what they are supposed to do. However, unfortunately, despite the increase in numbers and the overall educational improvement of the police force, strong negative perceptions of the police continue to haunt them as a whole.

Despite the establishment of rules and regulations regarding the treatment of those in custody, custodial deaths continue to mount. The government is yet to establish a body that could effectively oversee the conduct of the police force in dealing with the members of the public.

A general feeling of impunity prevails amongst certain sections of the police force that they can get away with crimes. But yet nothing has been done by the government to address this major problem that bedevils the police force.

Even though more than 40 percent of the country's population consists of non-Malays, however, this is not reflected in the composition of the police force. The force is overwhelmingly dominated by Malays, almost all the top ranks are in their hands.

So how can Zahid say that the Malaysian police is the best in the Asean region if recruitment, promotions and the provisions of perks are decided on a racial basis? 

Finally, Zahid should not make statements about the police or any other public body that would not stand the test of scrutiny. He should not think by saying these kinds of baseless things, that public perception of the police will improve over night.

I suppose Zahid, like other politicians in Umno, is realizing that he is running out of ideas and that he has come out with new ones, even if these do not have any basis.

P RAMASAMY is Deputy Chief Minister II of Penang and the state assemblyperson for Perai.

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