Tag: Polis DiRaja Malaysia

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The Non-Malay Heroes of Malaysia

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I am appalled that there still are those who deny the roles played by the non-Malays in defending this country, especially during the two Emergencies; that dark 33 years of fighting communism.  The history books emphasised more on the 12-year First Emergency because of its relation to the independence of Malaya, thus many forget that not too long-ago bombs were going off in the middle of Kuala Lumpur while ordinary policemen were getting slayed.

The First Emergency broke out in June 1948 with the murder of three British estate managers in Sungai Siput.  Fuelled by the progressive successes the Communist Party of China was having against the Kuomintang, the acts of banditry increased exponentially.  Based on a priori the British found it best to both resettle the Chinese in camps while between 20,000 to 50,000 be sent back to China.  The plan moved at a snail’s pace due to the objections by many, and with the total withdrawal of the Kuomintang to Formosa, the repatriation of the Chinese came to a halt in September 1949 when the Communist Party of China closed off all ports and beaches.  Only 6,000 Chinese from Malaya were sent back (Anthony Short, 1975 pp 178-201).  The rest were settled in new villages to curb them from supplying the Communist Party of Malaya with food and other essentials.

When Ismail Mina Ahmad, the chairman of the Ummah umbrella group for Muslim organisations, claimed that only the Malays fought against invaders and communists in this country, it shows the level of ignorance on his part (Syed Jaymal Zahiid – In fiery speech cleric tells forum only Malays fought invaders communists, Malay Mail Online, 13 January 2018).  His claim is far from the truth.

At the peak of the First Emergency, the British had to not only bring in members of the Palestine Police Force who were experienced in counter-insurgency warfare, but also recruited a large number of Chinese residents of Malaya.  Tan Sri Dr Too Chee Chew, more famously known as CC Too, headed the Psychological Warfare section.  We had the likes of Tan Sri Jimmy Koo Chong Kong, Tan Sri Yuen Yuet Ling, Datuk Leong Chee Woh to name a few who spent most of their lives fighting the communists.

CC Too, Koo Chong Kong and Yuen Yuet Ling were among the ranks of the Malayan People Anti-Japanese Army (MPAJA) during the Second World War who chose to go against their former comrades and became targets of the Communist Party of Malaya. Jimmy Khoo Chong Kong, who was also a former member of the Sarawak Communist Party before surrendering to the authorities and joining the Royal Malaysian Police, paid with his life on 13 November 1975 in Ipoh, Perak, as did his driver Constable (awarded Sergeant posthumously) Yeong Peng Cheong who died with his gun blazing.  Without hesitation, even with the knowledge that he was also on the hit list, Tan Sri Yuen Yuet Ling replaced Tan Sri Koo as the Perak Chief Police Officer.

When a Royal Malaysian Air Force Sikorsky S-61A Nuri helicopter was shot down in Gubir, Kedah on 27 April 1976, three Malaysian Chinese personnel were also among the 11 killed. They were Captain Choo Yeok Boo TUDM, Lieutenant Chung Ming Teck TUDM and Sergeant (Air) Leong Yee Heng.  They were on a resupply mission from the Butterworth Air Base when they were shot down.

Captain Frank Chong Keng Lay TUDM (retired as Lieutenant-Colonel) flew his Nuri into a hot landing zone to rescue several infantrymen.  His two commando escorts were killed as his Nuri took 22 heavy machinegun shots.  The next day he flew into the same landing zone to repeat the task.  Keng Lay was my Chief of Staff at the RMAF Air Training Command where I was a Staff Officer and later its Adjutant.

Inspectors Kamalanathan and Robert Cheah were inside a coffee shop meeting with informers when a terrorist threw a grenade into the shop.  The explosion maimed Kamalanathan and for the rest of his life he walked with an obvious limp with a grenade shrapnel still embedded in his leg.

There were many other non-Malay police officers in particular those who served in the Special Branch who died as unsung heroes as they were not recruited nor trained with other policemen.  They were the deep infiltrators, members of the community, who went on leading a double life that even their own family did not know they were all policemen.  Their pay did not come from Bluff Road (Bukit Aman) directly. DSP Jeganathan was a Jabatan Talikom employee tasked with setting up the police’s VHF network and spent years jungle-bashing, building towers on mountain and hilltops with the communist terrorists hot on his heels so that the police could have a nationwide communications network.

There were those who were just roadside sweepers working for the municipal and town councils, collecting information.  One had his cover blown when he was discovered in a different town by a neighbour asking him loudly what was he doing there sweeping the streets.

Another was on his death bed, ridden with cancer, when he sought the help of a Malaysian daily to contact my father to tell the latter of his condition.  His real name was quoted by the daily to my father, which my father could not recall.  My father asked the contact in the daily to ask him his Special Branch name. When the reply came, my father left his golf game and rushed to the hospital and after more than 50 years of being married, the wife and family finally knew the man-of-their-house was a hero fighting the communists, not just some small-time trader.

Let us not forget Chief Inspector Chin Chin Kooi.  He was a Special Branch officer probing communist activities in Serdang, Kedah.  At 9pm on 12 July 1973, six communist terrorists stormed into his home and let loose a volley of bullets.  Mortally wounded, Chin returned fire until his last breath.

Across the South China Sea, Police Field Force Superintendent Joni Mustapha was a champion Sarawak hurdler from 1958 to 1959.  Joni was watching a movie with his son in Sibu when a policeman relayed a message to him that his men were being pinned down by communist terrorists upriver Sungai Setabau.  He asked the policeman to stay with his son in the cinema and left to rescue his men.

Constable Nuing Saling, an Iban policeman, was on a two-week leave to be with his wife Imbok Jimbon who was six months pregnant with their third child.  Upon hearing that Joni was leaving for the jungle, hurriedly joined the team.  Both Joni and Nuing had made a pact that they would help each other. They left by boat to get to the location.  Upon arrival, they engaged the communist terrorists.  Joni was felled by machinegun fire but remained conscious to direct the firefight until he died.  Another constable friend, Abang Masri was already dead.  Seeing his commander and friend die, Nuing unsheathed his machete and charged at the terrorists’ position firing at them, only to be mown down.  He had been hit in the face by a bullet.  Nuing refused to give up.  He continued his charge and was hit several times more but kept on charging, killing and wounding many.  He died inside the location of the communist terrorists.

Kanang ak Langkau is perhaps the most known warrior from Sarawak who shed blood and tears fighting against the communist terrorists.  He was wounded several times but not once let his wounds stop him from fighting.

These are stories that we should all remember.  Stories of our non-Malay brethren heroes who risked and gave their lives so that we can all enjoy the peace and prosperity that God has bestowed upon us.  Many more have gone unsung, but they shall not be forgotten.  Especially not by selfishly ignoring the sacrifices that have been made by them.

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A Lesson On Fake News In Malaysia

STUDENT activism in Malaysia peaked in December 1974, having started in September of the same year in Tasek Utara, Johor Bahru, when some 5,000 students demonstrated at the Selangor Club Padang (now Dataran Merdeka) and as expected, clashed with the Federal Reserve Unit (FRU).

As a result, the students retreated to Masjid Negara with the FRU hot on their heels.  The demonstration was culled and 1,128 students arrested. The student leaders who were holed up on the University of Malaya campus were soon arrested and so were those who hid inside their rented rooms in nearby Kampung Kerinchi.

Three representatives of Kampung Kerinchi complained that the FRU had taken harsh measures to apprehend the students by firing tear gas and that had resulted in the death of a baby.

My father immediately summoned his then deputy, the late Tan Sri Mahmood Yunus, and then Director of Special Branch, the late (Tan Sri) Mohamed Amin Osman, and asked them if the FRU had indeed fired tear gas into Kampung Kerinchi. Amin was adamant the FRU did nothing as such.

When asked if he (Amin) had checked the allegations himself and also the report received from the FRU troop leader, Amin said no.  So my father instructed Amin to go to Kampung Kerinchi to check himself.

“Celaka! Depa tipu saya!” (“Hell! They lied to me!”) exclaimed Amin when he saw the empty tear gas canisters that littered the lanes of Kampung Kerinchi, to which my father replied, “You fell for it because you did not check the information yourself!”

Fake news is a neologism that has entered the lexicon, used to collectively describe rumours, hoaxes, misinformation, propaganda and recycling of old rumours that had been debunked, that mislead people into believing that they are current and true.

Fake news caused the Barisan Nasional to lose its long-held two-thirds majority in 2008 because it was complacent and not quick enough to react and dispel these rumours.  Back then, political discussions and dissemination of fake news or propaganda occurred in chat rooms, in SMS, and blogs which were only a handful then.  Now there is Facebook, Twitter, Line, Telegram, WhatsApp, YouTube over and above the media available almost ten years ago.

Claire Wardle, Executive Director of First Draft a non-profit organisation dedicated to finding solutions to the challenges associated with trust and truth in the digital age housed at the Shorenstein Centre on Media, Politics and Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School, categorised mis and disinformation into seven types:

Satire or parody – this type of misinformation has no intention to cause harm but has potential to fool. A good example of this is of a message purportedly sent by a passenger of the MH370 who said he managed to hide his iPhone5 up his anus!  This had been debunked as a prank, but there are those who still believe that the person did manage to shove a five-inch by two-inch phone up his anus without any problem on the island of Diego Garcia.

Misleading content – most recent would be issues tweeted by two artistes that evolve around the rising cost of living, the weakening ringgit, a shambolic economy, designed to rile up anger in their followers. The tweets, not backed by published facts and figures, would do damage to those who have no inclination to check for the truth and to retweet or forward to others.

Imposter content – these are usually propaganda designed to use genuine sources but impersonated as theirs. A simple example would be of Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Azmin Ali’s recent event officiating the opening of the Rawang-Serendah Bypass, eight days after the bypass was opened by a minister.

Fabricated content – this type of content is 100 per cent false and is designed to deceive and cause harm. If you remember in July 2007, PKR’s Tian Chua admitted that he had fabricated a photo to show that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak was together with Abdul Razak Baginda and now dead Mongolian-model Altantuya Shaaribu in Paris.

False connection – this is when headlines, visuals and captions do not support the content. The most famous example from recent times was of The Star’s headline that said “Malaysian Terrorist Leader” while having a huge photo of Muslims praying during the first night of Ramadan. Although The Star apologised for the error, it was not the first time it had made a similar mistake.

False context – this is when genuine content is shared with false contextual information. Artiste Fathia Latiff put up a screen capture of the price of fuel in various OPEC countries on Twitter, asking why Malaysia, as an oil producing country, charges very high for petrol?  The screen capture is of oil prices back in 2014. The average value of fuel prices for Malaysia between September 4, 2017 and December 11, 2017, was RM2.23. For comparison, the average price of petrol in the world for this period was RM5.82!

Manipulated content – this is when genuine information or image is manipulated to deceive. Recently, there was a video of a skinny polar bear with muscle atrophy struggling to find food in a snowless land that was made viral. This was attributed to global warming. However, the video was filmed in August when the tundra was snowless. It was only published in December.  Even the indigenous community living in the area thought it was a stunt to raise more funds and was doing a disservice to the war against climate change.

I don’t know why Malaysians are so gullible and eager to share fake news.

In WhatsApp groups, you can see how some people could post about something religious and then help spread fake news – something totally against religions. Nowadays, this fake news comes with a disclaimer – “Dari group sebelah”.

Every time we forward or share a post without double-checking or verifying, we add to the noise and confusion.  We never consider the source, we never consider the supporting sources and worst of all, we never check our biases.

The late Tan Sri Amin learnt this the hard way.

Having seen that he was misled about the FRU not firing tear gas into Kampung Kerinchi, he went on to check about the claims of a baby that had died as a result of the tear gas.  None of the three village representatives had themselves seen the dead baby and no one had actually reported to them of the death.

When asked where the information had come from, they replied, “From Anwar Ibrahim and the other student leaders!”

It seems that nothing has changed since 1974.

(This article was first published on The Mole)

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ISA – Who Got To Play God

(This article appeared as a commentary on The Mole – 30 October 2017)

October 30, 2017

THIS would be my mellow version of the Ops Lalang.

The Internal Security Act, 1960 or the ISA, was probably the most draconian law to ever exist in Malaysia.  Prior to having the ISA, preventive detention was done through the Emergency Regulations Ordinance of 1948 aimed at combatting the communist threats.

With the end of the first Malayan Emergency in 1960, the Ordinance of 148 was done away with but was replaced with the ISA.  The mood of the period must be understood to see the reason for having such law.

Although the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) had lost the fight, the struggle was continued from across the Thai border by cadres, as well as their supporters (Min Yuen) in Malaya.  They penetrated unions, the press, as well as associations, causing occasional racial tensions in the country.

Pre-1970 Malaysia was not all dandy when it came to race relations.  The economic power was held by the Chinese since the days of the British administration while the Malays had been relegated to being farmers or lower ranking civil servants.

The Chinese immigrants first came to the Malay states in 1777, and first settled in the state of Perak in 1830 (Patrick Sullivan, 1982: 13). Within 44 years, they numbered 26,000 in Perak alone.  In 1921, the number of Chinese immigrants in the Malay states numbered 1,171,740.  Ten years later, it was 1,704,452. In 1941, it became 2,377,990 while the Malays were at 2,277,352 (Paul H Kratoska, 1997:318). The Malays remained as a minority until the census of 1970.

During the war, the Malays did not face much hardship as the Chinese did at the hands of the Japanese.

After the war, the CPM/MPAJA and their Chinese supporters took revenge on the Malays. In Batu Pahat, Muslims were forbidden from congregating at mosques or suraus to perform the Terawih prayers (Hairi Abdullah, 1974/5: 8-9).

The same occurred in Perak and some parts of Batu Pahat where Muslims were gunned down and burnt together with the mosque they were in during Friday prayers.

Mosques and suraus were often used as places of meeting for the Chinese community (WO 172/9773, No.30: 478) and were tainted by incidents such as slaughtering of pigs, and mosques’ compound was used to cook pork, where Malays were forced to join the larger Chinese groups. Pages were torn from the Quran to be used by the Chinese using these mosques as toilet paper.

Racial clashes had begun in September 1945 where Malays and Chinese clashed in Kota Bharu, Selama, Taiping, Sitiawan, Raub.

This culminated in the slaughter of Malays early one morning in a hamlet near Kuala Kangsar called Bekor where 57 men and women, and 24 children were killed by about 500 members of the CPM aided by 500 Chinese villagers from Kelian in March 1946 (CO 537/1580: 21 and Majlis, 24 Februari 1947:5).

All in all, 2,000 lives were lost.

Such was the mood and the ISA was introduced to also prevent further racial clashes by preventing instigators from achieving their objective whatever that may be.

Therefore, it was an Act of Parliament that was used to preserve public order and morals.  If one is to read the ISA thoroughly, then it would be easier to see that the Act was not just about detention without trial, but also as a weapon for the Royal Malaysian Police to nip any cancerous threat to public order and morals in the bud.

Datuk Seri (now Tun) Dr Mahathir Mohamad was Prime Minister as well as Home Minister when Ops Lalang was executed on Oct 26 1987 (arrests were made in the early morning of Oct 27).

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was Umno Youth chief and also Education Minister in Dr Mahathir’s Third Cabinet.

Anwar had made several unpopular moves that earned the wrath of the MCA such as the removal of crucifixes from missionary schools, introduction of Bahasa Malaysia as the medium of instruction for Tamil and Chinese studies at the University of Malaya, as well as the introduction of non-Chinese educated senior assistants and supervisors to Chinese vernacular schools.

Deputy MCA president Datuk Seri (now Tan Sri) Lee Kim Sai who was also Selangor MCA chief, on the other hand, had also uttered words implying that the Malays were also immigrants.

A 2,000-strong gathering by the Dong Jiao Zong that was also attended by the DAP, MCA and Gerakan was held and a resolution was made to call a three-day boycott by Chinese schools.

Umno Youth responded with a 10,000-strong gathering at the TPCA Stadium in Kampung Baru.  It is said that Dr Mahathir then instructed Datuk Seri (Tan Sri) Sanusi Junid, who was Umno  secretary-general then, to organise a rally of 500,000 members in Kuala Lumpur.

I remember feeling the tension in the air, especially when an army personnel, Private Adam Jaafar, ran amok with his M-16 in Kampung Baru, adding more fuel to a potentially explosive situation.

The senior police management met in Fraser’s Hill to plan and then launched Ops Lalang to prevent bloodshed.

Whether or not Dr Mahathir disagreed with the police for Ops Lalang to be launched, it must be remembered that even if the police had wanted to launch the operations unilaterally, Section 8(1) of the ISA specifically mentions that it is the Home Minister who, upon being satisfied that the detention of any person is necessary, may make an order for the person to be detained for a period of not more than two years.

According to Section 73 of the Act, the police were not given the power to detain a person for more than 30 days unless the Inspector-General of Police had reported of the detention and its reason to the Home Minister.

Nowhere does the Act mention that the Home Minister SHALL or MUST act as advised by the police.  The police provided the names in a list, with reasons why they should be or were detained, but only the Minister could sign the detention order.

Dr Mahathir may now claim that Ops Lalang was the police’s idea, which may be true.  But as mentioned at the beginning of this article that the ISA is an Act of Parliament giving powers to the police to diffuse potentially explosive situations and also to protect and preserve public safety and morals.

The police used the ISA during Ops Lalang as it was intended to be used (there were also detainees from Umno during the sweep), but the Home Minister was the one who played God, and decided whom to be released before the 60 days was up, and whom to hold up to two years.

And that Home Minister is the same unrepentant person now touted to become the next PM by the DAP.

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Defence: Pentingnya Mempertahankan Kedaulatan Negara

Operasi Daulat Mac 2013

Pada hari Selasa bersamaan 12 Februari 2013, sekumpulan 100 orang bersenjata yang diketuai oleh Haji Musa, orang kanan Mohammad Ismail A Kiram, anak keempat kepada Muhammad Fuad A Kiram, seorang yang mengangkat dirinya sendiri sebagai Sultan Sulu, telah mendarat di Kampung Tanduo, Tanjung Labian, di daerah Lahad Datu, Sabah.

Menurut laporan asal, mereka berkumpul di sebuah rumah milik Ahmad Malandi, yang juga dikenali sebagai ‘Mat Bom‘ bukan hanya kerana beliau sering menggunakan bom buatan sendiri untuk menangkap ikan, tetapi juga kerana pernah menyerang sebuah pejabat FELDA di FELDA Sahabat  dalam tahun 1990an dengan menggunakan bom ikan gara-gara tidak berpuas hati dengan pertikaian tanah pusaka dengan FELDA.

Saya pernah menulis bagaimana kumpulan pertama yang terdiri dari lima orang yang memakai jubah diiringi 27 orang memakai separa-celoreng telah medarat terlebih dahulu, diikuti sekitar 70 orang kemudiannya.  Kesemua mereka bersenjatakan M-14 dan AR-15.

Pasukan keselamatan membuat tembakan di sebalik perlindungan semasa Op Daulat

Pasukan keselamatan telah mula bertindak dengan Polis DiRaja Malaysia menggerakkan dua kompeni dari Pasukan Gerakan Am, dan disokong oleh pegawai dan anggota Tentera Darat Malaysia dari 5 Briged Infantri.  Rundingan dijalankan pihak PDRM untuk memujuk mereka meletakkan senjata dan menyerah diri kepada pihak polis.  Malangnya, pada 1 Mac 2013 para pengganas Sulu ini bertindak bertempur dengan pasukan Komando 69 PDRM di Kampung Tanduo, diikuti dengan serang hendap terhadap pegawai dan anggota Cawangan Khas PDRM di Kampung Simunul di Semporna keesokan harinya.  Pada 5 Mac 2013, peringkat ofensif oleh Angkatan Tentera Malaysia dan PDRM telah dilancarkan untuk menghapuskan para pengganas tersebut.

Salah seorang pengganas Sulu yang mampus ditembak oleh pasukan keselamatan Malaysia

Peristiwa berdarah tersebut telah berlalu lebih empat tahun yang lalu dan ramai yang sudah melupakan peristiwa tersebut.  Malah sejak berakhirnya peristiwa tersebut, ada juga pihak-pihak yang berbaik-baik dengan musuh negara yang nyata dengan memberi mereka pengiktirafan politik di negara mereka.  Alasan yang diberikan ialah peristiwa di Kampung Tanduo adalah ‘kisah lama.’ Begitulah celakanya sikap mereka yang durjana ini.

“Kisah di Kampung Tanduo adalah kisah lama,” kata Ahli Parlimen DAP, Teresa Kok

Sungguh malang nasib balu dan ibubapa 10 orang para pegawai dan anggota PDRM dan ATM yang terkorban di Lahad Datu mempertahankan kedaulatan negara.  Pengorbanan anak mereka, suami mereka, bapa kepada anak-anak mereka, diperlekehkan oleh mereka yang tidak berhati perut, hanya kerana kepentingan politik sempit mereka.

Salah seorang perajurit negara yang terkorban di Lahad Datu

Baru-baru ini dilangsungkan perbarisan penganugerahan “Battle Honour Daulat Februari 2013” di Kota Kinabalu.  Selain untuk menganugerahkan unit-unit ATM yang terlibat dalam Op Daulat dengan “Battle Honour,” ianya juga adalah untuk memberitahu kepada rakyat Malaysia, terutamanya di Sabah, bahawa kerajaan tidak memandang ringan tugas mempertahankan kedaulatan negara, dan juga memperingatkan semua bahaya pencerobohan yang dilakukan sama ada untuk peperangan konvensional mahupun peperangan asimetri.

Perbarisan penganugerahan “Battle Honour Daulat Februari 2013” di Padang Merdeka, Kota Kinabalu pada 11 Ogos 2017

Lewat ini kita sering dapati sesetengah pihak yang tidak bertanggung jawab menyerang integriti serta moral pasukan keselamatan dengan menghina dan merendah-rendahkan kebolehan serta aset yang dimiliki pasukan keselamatan.  Mungkin mereka merasakan bahawa di dalam mana-mana peperangan, mereka tidak akan merasa sebarang kesusahan.

Kita ketahui terdapat anggota ATM dan PDRM yang tercedera dalam pertempuran semasa Op Daulat dilangsungkan tetapi tidak ramai yang mengetahui mahupun dapat menilai pengorbanan yang dilakukan oleh pasukan keselamatan kita untuk mempertahankan kedaulatan.  Ini bukannya cerita ‘Combat‘ mahupun ‘Rambo‘ di mana heronya akan mendapat luka-luka kecil tatkala bertempur, tetapi ada yang tidak sempurna anggota dan fungsi tubuh badan setelah terkena tembakan.

Berikut adalah di antara paparan yang mungkin tidak pernah dilihat oleh rakyat Malaysia sebelum ini, tetapi saya rasakan amat perlu ditunjuk supaya kita faham erti pengorbanan pasukan keselamatan kita.

Seorang anggota keselamatan Malaysia yang tercedera ditembak diberi rawatan oleh petugas Kor Kesihatan DiRaja
Seorang anggota pasukan keselamatan kita yang ditembak di dada diberi rawatan oleh petugas Kor Kesihatan DiRaja setelah peluru tersebut menembusi tubuh beliau

Sekiranya anda merasakan hanya para anggota keselamatan kita yang merasa pahit maung pertempuran, anda tersilap. Realitinya amat berbeza sekali.

Apabila hospital medan didirikan oleh Kor Kesihatan DiRaja di kawasan operasi, orang awam yang terdiri dari para penduduk di situ yang telah tercedera ditembak secara rambang oleh pengganas Sulu berduyun-duyun datang untuk mendapatkan rawatan kecemasan.  Di antara mereka termasuk kanak-kanak dan bayi yang menjadi mangsa keganasan pengganas Sulu.  Mereka langsung tidak berperi kemanusiaan terhadap para penduduk timur Sabah sedangkan mereka kata Sabah adalah hak mereka.

Seorang mangsa tembakan rambang pengganas Sulu mendapatkan rawatan setelah Kor Kesihatan DiRaja membuka hospital medan
Seorang kanak-kanak juga menjadi mangsa kekejaman peluru pengganas Sulu
Bayi yang tidak berdosa ini juga tidak terlepas dari keganasan para pengikut Kiram. Bayi ini telah kehilangan banyak darah semasa dibawa ke hospital medan ATM. Status bayi ini tidak diketahui sama ada selamat ataupun tidak

Rentetan daripada insiden di Lahad Datu inilah kerajaan mewujudkan ESSCOM untuk memantapkan kawalan keselamatan di timur Sabah.  Menteri Pertahanan Dato’ Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein berkata inisiatif terbaharu kerajaan ialah dengan menempatkan 7,000 anggota Tentera Darat  dengan perlaksanaan Op Daratan, Op Balasah, Op Khas dan Op Pasir bagi mempertahankan daratan Sabah.  Satu kompeni infantri Tentera Darat juga telah ditempatkan di kawasan Cenderawasih, Lahad Datu untuk memastikan kawasan pantai Lahad Datu terkawal sepenuhnya.

Tambah beliau lagi, inisiatif Trilateral Maritime Patrol (TMP) telah dilancarkan oleh Malaysia bagi memastikan mana-mana anggota militan termasuk Da’esh tidak menjadikan Laut Sulu sebagai laluan tikus untuk menceroboh masuk ke negara ini manakala inisiatif Trilateral Air Patrol (TAP) akan dilaksanakan dalam masa terdekat.

Jangan kita lupa siapa musuh kita.  Jangan kita bersekongkol dengan mereka yang bersahabat dengan musuh yang tidak senang dengan kemerdekaan dan kesenangan yang kita kecapi.  Jangan kita termakan hasutan politik kebencian (politics of hate) yang diamalkan oleh sesetengah pihak yang sanggup berbaik-baik dengan musuh untuk mendapat pengiktirafan mereka.

Musuh dalam selimut: Nurul Izzah bersama dengan Jacel Kiram, anak “Sultan” Kiram yang sehingga kini menganggap Sabah sebahagian dari “kerajaan” Sulu

Jangan kita lupa pengorbanan pasukan keselamatan kita. Jangan jadikan pemergian mereka, dan juga pemergian para penduduk yang menjadi mangsa kekejaman pengganas Sulu sebagai pemergian yang sia-sia.  Berikanlah sokongan tidak berbelah bahagi kepada pasukan keselamatan kita, terutamanya Angkatan Tentera Malaysia, kerana musuh tidak membeza-bezakan di antara tentera dan rakyat Malaysia.

Kita semua adalah musuh mereka.

Berilah sokongan tidak berbelah bahagi kepada Angkatan Tentera Malaysia
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Majlis Perbandaran Klang Ditadbir Oleh Bangkai?

Adakah pentadbiran Majlis Perbandaran Klang (MPK) dilakukan oleh sekumpulan bangkai?

Saya nyatakan sebegini kerana pentadbiran MPK menyalahkan pihak Polis DiRaja Malaysia kerana tidak menghalang pihak MPK, selaku penganjur Fiesta Gegar Klang di Kompleks Sukan Pandamaran, daripada mengadakan pertunjukan bunga api sempena sambutan Malam Tahun Baru.

Pertama sekali, larangan pembakaran mercun dan bunga api masih berkuat kuasa. MPK sebagai sebuah pihak berkuasa tempatan (PBT) juga pasti mengetahui mengenai perkara ini.

Keduanya, sebagai sebuah PBT MPK harus mempunyai prosedur-prosedur yang tetap mengenai penganjuran sesuatu majlis atau pertunjukan sama ada yang dianjurkan di kawasan-kawasan milik MPK oleh penganjur luar mahupun oleh MPK sendiri.

Sudah tentu sebagai penganjur Fiesta, pihak MPK arif dengan prosedur-prosedurnya sendiri. Ini termasuk menyemak lesen mengimpot dan kelayakan menggunakan bunga api yang diberi oleh Kementerian Dalam Negeri untuk pertunjukan kepunyaan kontraktor yang dipertanggung jawabkan untuk membuat pertunjukan tersebut.

Sekiranya mereka tiada memiliki lesen mengimpot mahupun kelayakan membakar bunga api tersebut mereka boleh didakwa mengikut Seksyen 4(2) Akta Bahan Letupan 1957 yang jika sabit kesalahan, boleh dihukum penjara lima tahun atau denda RM10,000 atau kedua-duanya.

Maka, adakah MPK telah berlaku secara tidak bertanggung jawab memberi kontrak pertunjukan bunga api kepada sebuah syarikat yang tidak berlesen?

Ketiga, sebagai penganjur juga MPK bertanggung jawab menentukan jarak selamat di antara kawasan pembakaran bunga api tersebut dengan kawasan para penonton. Dari segi perundangan, MPK mempunyai duty of care untuk menentukan keselamatan para pengunjung di premis miliknya itu.

Keempat, kita semua tahu mengenai larangan pembakaran bunga api dan mercun yang masih berkuat kuasa. Kalau membakar mercun skala kecil oleh individu menjadi kesalahan, mustahil MPK berfikir tidak perlu memohon sebarang permit untuk pembakaran bunga api pada skala yang besar.

Orang yang pemikirannya normal sudah tentu akan memeriksa dengan kontraktor bunga api tersebut bukan sahaja berkenaan lesen, sijil kelayakan yang dinyatakan di atas, tetapi juga permit untuk mengadakan pertunjukan bunga api tersebut.

Hanya bangkai yang tidak berupaya berfikir sedemikian.

Maka, alasan mengatakan pihak PDRM yang menjadi sebahagian dari jawatankuasa Fiesta adalah amat daif. Saya berani katakan bahawa pihak PDRM dijemput hadir untuk kawalan trafik dan bukannya terlibat dengan tatacara perjalanan Fiesta tersebut.

Kalau saya seorang peguam yang mahu mengukir nama, dengan segera saya akan adakan khidmat guaman pro bono buat mereka yang tercedera mahupun yang mengalami trauma mental akibat kejadian tersebut dan saman pihak MPK dalam satu class action. Kes ini memang kes tentu menang.

Tak usahlah pihak MPK nak salahkan orang lain. MPK adalah penganjur, maka MPK sahajalah yang bertanggung jawab di atas kejadian tersebut.

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Functioning Parachute

The Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission started off as a unit called Special Crimes Unit of the Royal Malaysian Police’s Criminal Investigation Department back in the 1960s. I am sorry to disappoint many youngsters but yes,corruption  did not just happen yesterday. In 1967, a body called the Badan Pencegah Rasuah was formed and police officers from the Special Crimes unit were seconded to this new outfit.

In 1973, the BPR was again restructured and was called the Biro Siasatan Negara, only to be restructured in 1982 and renamed the Badan Pencegah Rasuah.  Among the police officers seconded to the BPR was the late Mohd Jamil Mohd Said, brother-in-law of the late Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department the late Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Othman. Jamil, a no-nonsense God-fearing disciplinarian knew a lot about the going-ons in the early 1980s administration.

Wan Saiful Wan Jan, the opposition-leaning CEO of IDEAS was reported as saying that Datuk Mustafar Ali, currently number three in the MACC, should replace Abu Kassim upon the latter’s retirement. Parachuting an outsider, said Wan Saiful, would only disrupt the transformation of the Commission.

History is very important sonthat we can learn from the past. The MACC in its current form is an organisation that is being looked at with doubt and distrust. It was not that long ago when we saw a charge sheet being drafted BEFORE a statement was obtained from Prime Minister Najib. Yet in the Lim Guan Eng case, the MACC took its own sweet time to investigate and had it not been for public pressure, Lim Guan Eng would still be walking around like the Emperor he believes he is. Not only that, leaked documents suggest that they have come from various sources including the MACC. If this is true, there is a serious erosion of integrity amongst the MACC officers. Parachuting an “outsider” would probably create resentment, but it would also bring about reform and not just transformation.

In 1993, a senior police director was parachuted into the Prisons Department and everyone in the prisons organisation resented that. But Tan Sri Zaman Khan (then Datuk) managed to transform the department into a much more efficient organisation because the change in leadership saw officers with potential whom were kept beneath the radar finally came out with brilliant ideas on how to reform and transform the organisation. It was during Zaman’s tenure that the management of prisoners became better, prison conditions began to get better, and the idea for allowing parole was mooted. Two years after taking office, Zaman, got the Prisons Act 1995 effected.

One of the two persons tipped to become the next MACC chief is Tan Sri Noor Rashid, the current Deputy Inspector General of Police. Like the late Jamil Said and Zaman, Noor Rashid is another no-nonsense senior police officer who rose through the ranks while being in the Criminal Investigation Department, the origin of the MACC. He would be the most suitable candidate to replace Abu Kassim in my opinion.

When I took over my squadron in 1993, I signed 96 transfer forms on the first day of taking office because of organisational requirements and told those who think that they cannot work with me to do the same. In the end I was left with just 30 non-commissioned officers and junior ranks to do the job of 126. But I had 30 excellent men and women working for me.

Perhaps it is time for the MACC to have a new boss to give it a good shaking-up. Those who resent having an outsider as a boss should leave or learn to adapt. Hopefully we will get to see a more efficient and trustworthy MACC soon.

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SAREX LIMA 2015 – The RMAF EC725

The survivor floats on the surface of the sea, having escaped a plane crash less than an hour ago.  The current here is strong and he drifts farther away from the main group of survivors.  Then he saw a speck of grey flying towards him.  It was a Airbus Helicopter EC725 dubbed the Super Cougar, the new workhorse of the Royal Malaysian Air Force.

Inside the cockpit, the pilot could spot the lone survivor and a few others, drifting towards the open sea.  Thanks to the AHCAS (Advanced Helicopter Cockpit and Avionics System), pilots of the EC725 could do what its predecessor, the Sikorsky S-61A4 Nuri, could not.  The EC725 features a full glass cockpit and the Active Matrix Liquid Crystal Displays ensure the pilots better monitoring of the displays under the glaring late morning sun.

The pilot hovers over the drifting survivor. He is assisted by a digital search and rescue system that provides automatic search patterns, transition and hover. Unlike the Nuri, the EC725 could “drift” along with the survivor as the winch strop is lowered by the air quartermaster.  Although the hover altitude is higher (more than double the Nuri’s), the EC725 managed to pick up the drifting survivor and other drifting survivors in no time, thanks to the powerful twin Turbomeca Makila 1A4 turboshaft engines that features a dual-channel Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) , something the Nuri was not capable of.  The Nuri would have to fly away after a couple of pick ups to cool its engines off.

The above was the Water Search And Rescue portion of the Search and Rescue exercise (SAREX LIMA 15) in preparation for next week’s Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition 2015 (LIMA 2015).  The exercise was divided into two segments, Water SAR and Land SAR.  SAREX LIMA 15 was to test the Search and Rescue plan and inter-agencies coordination and logistical cooperation.  The aim was to test, assess and improve the Airport Emergency Plan before the commencement of LIMA 2015. The Exercise was held from the 4th to 6th March 2015 and involved among others the Royal Malaysian Air Force, Royal Malaysian Police, Royal Malaysian Navy, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad, the Fire and Rescue Services Department, the Malaysian Marine Department, Ministry of Health, the Malaysian Meteorological Department, the Malaysian Army’s Royal Medical Corps, Malaysia Airlines, Air Asia and last but not least, the Department of Civil Aviation of Malaysia.  Assets that were involved included two helicopters, 11 surface vessels and four jet-skis.

The EC725 takes off carrying critically-injured survivors during SAREX LIMA 15
The EC725 takes off carrying critically-injured survivors during SAREX LIMA 15

When met, RMAF’s Chief of Staff (Air Operations) Major General Dato Haji Abdul Mutalib bin Abdul Wahab TUDM said that he was awed by the superb performance of the EC725.  He opined that the EC725 is by far the best search-and-rescue asset he has ever seen, given the capabilities it displayed during SAREX LIMA 15.  This is of course of utmost importance as there are quarters bent on ridiculing military purchases.  Seeing with my own eyes how the EC725 was able to hover effortlessly throughout the exercise brought much satisfaction to me knowing that this was the correct choice made by the RMAF and there should not be any politically-motivated condemnation towards the organisation for purchasing what it should have had for the longest time.

The Fire and Rescue Services Department should also be applauded for a superb medical evacuation exercise task performed at SAREX LIMA 15 using its Mi-171 helicopter.

The FRSD's Mi-171 takes off carrying three critically-injured survivors during SAREX LIMA 15
The FRSD’s Mi-171 takes off carrying three critically-injured survivors during SAREX LIMA 15

It is hoped that the inter-agencies coordination that was put to test during SAREX LIMA 15 will better prepare the emergency services for any eventuality not just for LIMA 2015, but for all search-and-rescue incidents.

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Stop Breathe Think Act

Stop, think, breathe, act. It is a life-saving rule in times of trouble.  Monkeys are not known to be capable of acting this way.

Here, have a read at this first:

Press Statement by YB Zuraida on IGP Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar

2 September 2014

The IGP has gone overboard with his latest arrest of the Penang Voluntary Patrol Unit (PPS). As IGP, he cannot simply declare any society as illegal and should go through proper procedures. Any society unregistered with the ROS must first be declared illegal by the ROS like Hindraf. There must also be proof that the society had tried to register with the ROS and was declined its registration.

The scenario for PPS is different. PPS is part of the Penang State Government body and comprises of the state exco members and state assemblymen.

The IGP should be aware that he is a public servant and that the public’s interest comes first. The police force should not be used as a means to oppress the public.

PPS had always been a voluntary unit to help the community in emergencies and disasters. If the PDRM had been efficient, there would be no need for volunteers to step up and help the police in their work. These volunteers sacrifice their family time just to make their neighbourhood a safer place to live in. Due to the community spirit and selflessness of these PPS members, crime rates in Penang have gone down.

PPS was set up many years ago. There is no reason why the IGP should suddenly and unjustly call it illegal and start to crackdown on these innocent volunteers when all along, these PPS members report to their respective neighbourhood police stations before patrolling the area. Threatening to raid the homes of these volunteers unless they surrender themselves to the police is also absurd and an abuse of power.

The IGP has shown very weak leadership.

In the case of Victor Wong and Nasrul, both who offended the IGP by describing him as Henrich Himmler and Anjing BN respectively, and subsequently being directed by the IGP that both be investigated by the Police Cyber Investigation Response Centre (PCIRC) shows a lack of tolerance for personal opinion. Even after Victor Wong tweeted an apology to the IGP and PDRM, Khalid is bent on taking action against the two under Section 233 of the Communication and Multimedia Act 1998 and Sedition Act 1948.

These heavy-handed clampdown on those in opposition towards the Federal Government is a repeat of Operasi Lalang.

The IGP should be reminded that the PDRM is not his personal army.

YB Zuraida Kamaruddin
Ahli Parlimen Ampang
Ketua Wanita Keadilan

I instantaneously burst into laughter after reading the statement above. Of course, Zuraida aka Mak Lampir is just one of those Lab Monkeys the PKR fielded in 2008 and never expected to have won the seat.  Perhaps she, like Wan Azizah, need to have a good grasp of their surroundings and of current affairs before coming up with such bravado (Wan Azizah still thinks that the Lembaga Letrik Negara or LLN still exists!).

The Royal Malaysian Police only affected the arrest of more than a hundred members of the illegal Persatuan or Pertubuhan Peronda Sukarela (PPS) or whatever you call it by on the 31st August 2014, that Lim Guan Eng claims to have been set up four years ago under the powers vested to the Penang State Government to assist the police in crime-fighting.  However, members of the PPS have been seen putting up DAP party flags and banners instead and have been involved in acts that are extrajudicialis.  Nothing much is known about the PPS despite having been set up for four years. No paper work, no guidelines, nothing.  It is just a band of vigilantes set up in the name of the state government.

 

The action by the police was taken after a warning was issued for the PPS NOT to gather on the 31st August 2014.  This was after the letter below dated 26th August 2014 from the Registrar of Societies was received:

Letter from RoS on the status of the PPS
Letter from RoS on the status of the PPS

With such information in hand, only idiots like Zuraida and those who support her still think that it is absurd and an abuse of police power for going after the members of the PPS.  Lim Guan Eng’s feeble attempt at equating the PPS to the JKKK is also a funny act.  The JKKK (Jawatankuasa Keselamatan dan Kemajuan Kampung) is formed under the local government to become a committee to channel issues affecting the socio-welfare, development and security of a kampung.  They do not have extra-judicial but absent powers and do not wear any uniform like that of the PPS.

Sméagol and Gollum. Innocent and dangerous at the same time.
Sméagol and Gollum. Innocent and dangerous at the same time.

If Lim Guan Eng is so adamant that the police in Penang are short-handed, why not utilise the funds paid tot he PPS members to provide allowances to support the RELA and Rukun Tetangga initiatives, both which are legal organisations empowered to assist the police when needed? Why the need to set up a shady uniformed organisation that has no guideline whatsoever and does all DAP’s biddings?

Anyway, as I mentioned, Zuraida is a lab monkey from the 2008 era. Had she read the letter from the RoS above and understood its content and where it falls on the timeline, she might not have issued such  press statement that excites the public’s disaffection against the administration of justice.

Zuraida Kamaruddin's press release smacks of seditious tendencies
Zuraida Kamaruddin’s press release smacks of seditious tendencies

As other lab monkeys gone rogue, she needs to be hauled up too!