Malaysians, who are generally immune to shocking scandals, must have been flabbergasted by the latest dare-devil defiance of the police against the legitimate orders of the nation's highest authority.

On Nov 24, a video clip of female police officer ordering a naked woman - believed to be of Chinese nationality - to do 10 ear squats was shown to MPs in Parliament House. They and many ministers expressed disgust over the humiliation of the detainee.

The next day, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, obviously infuriated at such abusive conduct, called such incidents "shameful" and damaging to the country's image. He ordered Deputy Inspector-General of Police Musa Hassan to carry out an immediate and thorough investigation and to take stern action against the culprits.

But on Nov 26, Musa made an earth-shattering announcement: "It is the perpetrator behind the video footage whom we are after and not the policewoman who was carrying out a routine check."