Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang has apologised to the residents of Johor Baru for Parliament's 'failure to articulate their right to feel safe in the city'.

"As parliamentary opposition leader, I apologise to the people of JB that Parliament had failed abysmally in the past week to articulate their deepest fears and anxieties about their personal safety and those of their loved ones," he said in a statement today.

The veteran politician said he has never felt more ashamed in his 33 years as an MP when his urgent motion to debate on the alarming crime rate in JB was shot down.

"I feel that I have terribly let down the people of JB and Malaysia as Parliament has again proved to be utterly irrelevant and indifferent to the burning concerns of the people," he added.

Lim said he was puzzled as to why there is a lack of concern among Barisan Nasional MPs over this issue.

"These MPs have not uttered a single word in Parliament for the past week on the rampant crimes that have become a daylight nightmare for everyone in Johor. Can they explain why?" he asked.

1,000 additional cops

Lim said his disappointment was compounded by media reports on two more gang rapes in JB on Wednesday.

The opposition leader also expressed disappointment with Wednesday's Cabinet meeting for not declaring anything new apart from the deployment of 400 policemen in JB and the setting up of temporary police stations.

"What the people of JB and Malaysia want are not verbal assurances from the Cabinet that action will be taken," he said, adding that the public want immediate action to ensure their safety.

"For starters, JB needs an immediate deployment of at least 1,000 more policemen and not just 400," he pointed out.

"Southern JB with a population of 1,159,079 has 1,1159 police personnel, whereas, Northen JB with a population of 530,990 has only 684 police personnel," he said.

Lim called on all MPs from both sides of the political divide to make an united stand on this issue.