IGP: Act to restore confidence
The recent police shoot out in Klang that killed five suspected criminals is regrettable and deeply disturbing.
Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Musa Hassan righty said that the responsibility of the police is to protect and rescue law-abiding citizens, and not to protect criminals who kill to escape arrest. It is clearly within the right of the police to act in self-defense and protect the lives of innocent by-standers. If the police really acted in self defense as he claims, then there is absolutely no reason to question them for their actions. However if otherwise,as claimed by many, then we have some serious problems to address as we had lost five young Malaysians at the prime of their lives who were yet to be proven to be criminals.
The IGP strongly denied all allegations by various quarters including some members of parliament that the police was trigger happy and only targeted the Indian community. These are serious allegations that have instilled fear and anxiety in the minds of the vast majority of the Indian parents regarding the safety of their children who are decent law abiding citizens.As Indian parents we fear the safety of our young children when they are out with their friends even for healthy activities.
While the IGP’s reassurances are welcome he must do more to allay the fears among the people as a number of questions remains unanswered regarding the recent shooting in Klang where five suspected criminals were shot dead by the police.So far we only have the police side of the story which the people are not willing to believe as result of past experiences.
This is not the first time for such a controversial police action. A number of similar shooting incidences before were ignored despite calls for thorough investigation. This has created a negative public perception of the police. These perceptions may be wrong but the onus is on the IGP and the police to correct it with some urgency as the fear among the people for their safety in genuine.
The shooting must not be made into a racial issue as that will only lead to cover up and pushing the problem under the carpet. Instead it questions the professionalism of our police force and the IGP and the government should act to prove that the assault on the alleged robbers was in accordance with the set laws governing such operations. They must ensure that all rules were followed and all precautions taken to avoid unnecessary deaths.
Was indiscriminate force used by the police? What was the evidence to indicate that the suspects were the real criminals? Did the suspected criminals open fire at the police? These are the questions that need to be answered. This can only be done by a professional and unbiased investigation into the incident to reveal the truth.
Only by doing so can the allegations against the police be proven false and the negative image erased from the minds of the people at large. There have been too many such incidences that brings into question the reputation and integrity of our police which was held in high esteem. The IGP and the government must take this opportunity to restore the confidence of the rakyat on the police force as the true guardian of their safety.
Dr.Chris Anthony
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
Adopt a tougher stand on corruption
No compromise on a serious evil
The decision of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to set up a special team to study and identify loopholes in the procedures linked to allocations for assemblymen and Members of Parliament (MP) is indeed timely and commendable.
The recent spate of prosecution of assemblymen and MPs indicate that corruption may indeed be a major problem among our lawmakers who are accused of abusing the funds that are meant for the people who elected them. Such acts, if proven true, would be serious betrayal of the very people whom they are supposed to serve. The MAAC should leave no stone unturned in their attempts to rid of corruption among our elected representatives.
While the MACC should be commended for its actions to fight corruption among assemblymen and MPs it should also be remembered that such corruption is not confined to just a few representatives. Moreover the magnitude of the corruption by these elected representatives is much smaller than the many mega scandals that have plagued the nation and which the MACC has yet to address. If the MAAC wants to gain the confidence of the people of its impartiality and integrity it has to act on such mega cases without fear or favor.
Corruption is defined as the illegal, bad or dishonest behavior, especially by people in positions of power. It is the expression of greed, a basic commodity of all humans, though of varying degree. Going by this definition we know that corruption is more rampant than it may appear on the surface. It occurs at all levels of the administration in varying degree.
Despite the efforts to eradicate corruption throughout the ages and the teachings of great men and even prophets of the past against greed, corruption continues to be rampant at every level of our society in communities all over the world. It is interesting how the perception of corruption has changed over the years. When we were young, we were taught the no-nonsense approach to corruption. We were taught that corruption is terribly wrong in whatever form or magnitude it may take.
However today, we are now told even by our top leaders that corruption may be a technical, moral or legal offense and if one is found guilty on 'technical' grounds, then it is not a real offense.It is worrisome that the incidence of such 'technical' corruption is on the rise. If our leaders have such compromising views on corruption, there is no way this evil can be eradicated. With such a casual attitude towards a serious evil it is truly disturbing that corruption may soon become our way of life. If it does so then we will be heading for doom.
There is an urgent need to educate the people to regard corruption as an infiltrating cancer that would soon destroy the nation if ignored. It is the scourge of the country against which the government and people must mount an all out war. It we do not destroy it then it is just a matter of time it will destroy us and all that we have achieved so far and the ideals we have stool for all these years.
In this highly competitive global world there is a dire need to be adequately equipped in all fields. All citizens regardless of race, creed, political affiliation and social status must be given equal opportunities to contribute their talents and skills without prejudice whatsoever. Corruption, if allowed to continue, will only deny the best that opportunity and thereby undermine our competitiveness and all our efforts to uplift the nation to be at par with the best in the world.
Dr.Chris Anthony
The decision of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to set up a special team to study and identify loopholes in the procedures linked to allocations for assemblymen and Members of Parliament (MP) is indeed timely and commendable.
The recent spate of prosecution of assemblymen and MPs indicate that corruption may indeed be a major problem among our lawmakers who are accused of abusing the funds that are meant for the people who elected them. Such acts, if proven true, would be serious betrayal of the very people whom they are supposed to serve. The MAAC should leave no stone unturned in their attempts to rid of corruption among our elected representatives.
While the MACC should be commended for its actions to fight corruption among assemblymen and MPs it should also be remembered that such corruption is not confined to just a few representatives. Moreover the magnitude of the corruption by these elected representatives is much smaller than the many mega scandals that have plagued the nation and which the MACC has yet to address. If the MAAC wants to gain the confidence of the people of its impartiality and integrity it has to act on such mega cases without fear or favor.
Corruption is defined as the illegal, bad or dishonest behavior, especially by people in positions of power. It is the expression of greed, a basic commodity of all humans, though of varying degree. Going by this definition we know that corruption is more rampant than it may appear on the surface. It occurs at all levels of the administration in varying degree.
Despite the efforts to eradicate corruption throughout the ages and the teachings of great men and even prophets of the past against greed, corruption continues to be rampant at every level of our society in communities all over the world. It is interesting how the perception of corruption has changed over the years. When we were young, we were taught the no-nonsense approach to corruption. We were taught that corruption is terribly wrong in whatever form or magnitude it may take.
However today, we are now told even by our top leaders that corruption may be a technical, moral or legal offense and if one is found guilty on 'technical' grounds, then it is not a real offense.It is worrisome that the incidence of such 'technical' corruption is on the rise. If our leaders have such compromising views on corruption, there is no way this evil can be eradicated. With such a casual attitude towards a serious evil it is truly disturbing that corruption may soon become our way of life. If it does so then we will be heading for doom.
There is an urgent need to educate the people to regard corruption as an infiltrating cancer that would soon destroy the nation if ignored. It is the scourge of the country against which the government and people must mount an all out war. It we do not destroy it then it is just a matter of time it will destroy us and all that we have achieved so far and the ideals we have stool for all these years.
In this highly competitive global world there is a dire need to be adequately equipped in all fields. All citizens regardless of race, creed, political affiliation and social status must be given equal opportunities to contribute their talents and skills without prejudice whatsoever. Corruption, if allowed to continue, will only deny the best that opportunity and thereby undermine our competitiveness and all our efforts to uplift the nation to be at par with the best in the world.
Dr.Chris Anthony
Thursday, October 29, 2009
1Malaysia camp tragedy, a cause for concern
Mistakes of past a lesson for future
The tragedy that struck the 1 Malaysia camp in Kuala Dipang, Kampar was indeed very regrettable. It led to the death of an 11 year old girl with two 2 others still missing. It is dreadful to imagine the agony of the parents especially those anxiously awaiting the fate of their missing children. We are told that these 1 Malaysia camps are for a noble purpose, to foster unity and interaction among primary school children of all races, through activities such as traditional cooking, cultural training and games.
However are these camps the best and only means of fostering racial unity? Do we need to take young primary school children into remote areas for such a purpose? Are the teachers adequately trained and equipped to handle emergencies in such areas like this tragedy? What was the need for these children to cross a river 30meters wide and 1.5 meters deep on a suspension bridge at 10.30pm at night? Shouldn’t young children of their age be in bed by that time? Why weren’t they provided with life jackets when crossing the river? How was that 30 to 50 children were allowed to get onto the bridge at the same time?
Another series of questions concern the quality and safety of the bridge itself.The bridge collapsed after one of the metal pillars supporting it got ripped off the ground by the weight of the children. We are told it was newly built but was it built to specifications? If so why did the metal pillar and its concrete block foundation got ripped off the ground in the incident? Obviously the size of the base concrete block did not match the metal pillars which held the cables.
Why was a suspension bridge chosen instead of the traditional wooden or concrete one over a river as wide, deep and hazardous as the Kampar River that is known for extreme water sports? We are also told that the bridge was given free. It is hard to believe that today one would give something free without some rewards in other forms.
These are some of the disturbing questions that must be addressed by the authorities, police and if necessary the MACC with some urgency and impartiality. A detailed and independent probe must be conducted to get to the truth so as to prevent such tragedies in the future. There is the general perception among ordinary people that corruption and cronyism may the underlying cause in this all previous tragedies.
Tragedies from human error are inevitable but we must learn from such incidences and take steps to prevent the repeat of such fatal mistakes. It looks like we never seem to learn from past our mistakes but keep repeating them over and over again. Each time such a tragedy occurs there is so much hoo-ha in the media, committees are set up to investigate but no concrete results come out of all that, only to be struck by another disaster at a later time and at a different place.
We hope this tragedy in Kampar will open the eyes of the authorities to place the welfare of the people above everything else. They should temporarily suspend all unity camps for children and get the experts to check the safety of all the facilities in them. It is also timely to review in a truly professional manner the needs for such camps to promote unity among the children of various races. It is time to seriously look into better, safer and more effective ways of doing that than by bringing the children of various races to a remote camp for a few days with all the attendant risks.
Children of all ethnicity are essentially color blind to start with; it is the adults, as leaders, parents and teachers, who sow the seeds of racism in them by their own examples for whatever reasons. Unless they get rid of racial and religious bias in them and stop reminding them of their ethnic differences, there is no way our children can be united by all the unity camps that we may hold.
Dr.Chris Anthony
The tragedy that struck the 1 Malaysia camp in Kuala Dipang, Kampar was indeed very regrettable. It led to the death of an 11 year old girl with two 2 others still missing. It is dreadful to imagine the agony of the parents especially those anxiously awaiting the fate of their missing children. We are told that these 1 Malaysia camps are for a noble purpose, to foster unity and interaction among primary school children of all races, through activities such as traditional cooking, cultural training and games.
However are these camps the best and only means of fostering racial unity? Do we need to take young primary school children into remote areas for such a purpose? Are the teachers adequately trained and equipped to handle emergencies in such areas like this tragedy? What was the need for these children to cross a river 30meters wide and 1.5 meters deep on a suspension bridge at 10.30pm at night? Shouldn’t young children of their age be in bed by that time? Why weren’t they provided with life jackets when crossing the river? How was that 30 to 50 children were allowed to get onto the bridge at the same time?
Another series of questions concern the quality and safety of the bridge itself.The bridge collapsed after one of the metal pillars supporting it got ripped off the ground by the weight of the children. We are told it was newly built but was it built to specifications? If so why did the metal pillar and its concrete block foundation got ripped off the ground in the incident? Obviously the size of the base concrete block did not match the metal pillars which held the cables.
Why was a suspension bridge chosen instead of the traditional wooden or concrete one over a river as wide, deep and hazardous as the Kampar River that is known for extreme water sports? We are also told that the bridge was given free. It is hard to believe that today one would give something free without some rewards in other forms.
These are some of the disturbing questions that must be addressed by the authorities, police and if necessary the MACC with some urgency and impartiality. A detailed and independent probe must be conducted to get to the truth so as to prevent such tragedies in the future. There is the general perception among ordinary people that corruption and cronyism may the underlying cause in this all previous tragedies.
Tragedies from human error are inevitable but we must learn from such incidences and take steps to prevent the repeat of such fatal mistakes. It looks like we never seem to learn from past our mistakes but keep repeating them over and over again. Each time such a tragedy occurs there is so much hoo-ha in the media, committees are set up to investigate but no concrete results come out of all that, only to be struck by another disaster at a later time and at a different place.
We hope this tragedy in Kampar will open the eyes of the authorities to place the welfare of the people above everything else. They should temporarily suspend all unity camps for children and get the experts to check the safety of all the facilities in them. It is also timely to review in a truly professional manner the needs for such camps to promote unity among the children of various races. It is time to seriously look into better, safer and more effective ways of doing that than by bringing the children of various races to a remote camp for a few days with all the attendant risks.
Children of all ethnicity are essentially color blind to start with; it is the adults, as leaders, parents and teachers, who sow the seeds of racism in them by their own examples for whatever reasons. Unless they get rid of racial and religious bias in them and stop reminding them of their ethnic differences, there is no way our children can be united by all the unity camps that we may hold.
Dr.Chris Anthony
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