One common thread of the three public hearings of the Parliamentary Caucus on Human Rights and Good Governance on “Fight Rising Crime” held in Johor Baru last Sunday, Petaling Jaya on Wednesday and Bukit Mertajam this morning is the palpable fear of crime which have gripped Malaysians in the hot spots of crime in the country.
Fifteen years ago, there was crime but “the fear of crime” had not surfaced in the country.
Today, in Johor Baru, Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya, Klang, Penang, Ipoh, the “fear of crime” have come into the lives of Malaysians making them ever fearful about their own safety and those of their loved ones in the streets, public places and even when at home, gravely degrading the quality of life of Malaysians.
Up to now, the Police have only admitted to the problem of crime but not the “fear of crime” haunting and hounding the lives of Malaysians in the hot-spots of crime. If the police is not even prepared to admit that “the fear of crime” is as real and big as the problem of crime in the hot spots of crime in the country — inter-related but separate problems – how can the police successfully reduce and wipe out the “fear of crime”?
As a first step to effectively fight crime and the fear of crime, the Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan should openly admit that the “fear of crime” is a new threat which the police must target to wipe out in the battle against crime, with regular monitoring of the success of police performance on two separate measures – to reduce crime and the fear of crime.
The Seberang Prai Tengah district police chief Assistant Commissioner Mohd Anil Shah Abdullah must be commended for attending the Parliamentary Caucus public hearing in Bukit Mertajam this morning, where he received plaudits from several speakers.
Mohd Anil can bear testimony that there was no public animosity against the police at the public hearing but all-round goodwill and criticisms raised at the three-hour hearing were made not to run down the police force but to make it more effective and efficient to achieve its objective to maintain a safe and secure environment by reducing crime and the fear of crime.
The preparedness of the police to face public scrutiny and criticisms before the nation’s media, whether at the public hearing of the Parliamentary Caucus on Human Rights and Good Governance or other forums, is an acid test, firstly as to whether the Police is prepared to end its denial syndrome that it had been fighting a losing battle against crime and the fear of crime; and secondly, that it is serious in wanting to regain public confidence and work with all Malaysian stakeholders to establish a low-crime Malaysia where the people do not live in “fear of crime”!