Musa Hassan’s Contract Extension is a Great Betrayal to All Malaysians

Press Statement by Teresa Kok, Member of Parliament for Seputeh and State Exco for Selangor on 5th September 2009 at Kuala Lumpur

Musa Hassan’s Contract Extension is a Great Betrayal to All Malaysians

The people of Malaysia felt greatly aghast and betrayed by the second extension of IGP Musa Hassan’s contract in spite of his atrocious track record in maintaining law and order, selective persecution, corruption, incompetency and below par performance.

To add salt to the wound, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s even had the audacity to claim that this extension was due to Musa’s excellent record which is a blatant lie.

I wonder what great ‘service’ Musa Hassan has performed for Malaysians to warrant such praise from Muhyiddin. With Musa Hassan as IGP over the last three years, we have seen:

1. Increasing fear of crime

Based on a survey conducted by the Home Ministry itself in July this year,  97% or 9,729 out of 10,060 respondents felt unsafe because of the high crime rate, with only 1% or 89 respondents feeling safe and 2% or 242 respondents in the “uncertain” category. This is indicative that under Musa’s watch, Malaysians have little sense of peace and safety in our own country.

Muhyddin should make a survey of all the housing areas in Selangor and will notice that almost all residential areas have been fortified and guarded. Why? Because the Police has failed to provide basic security of crime prevention.

2. Increasing violation of human rights

Many Malaysians still remember Raja Petra, Tan Hoon Cheng and I were arrested under the draconian ISA on 12th September 2008. The then Minister of Home Affairs, Dato Seri Syed Hamid had on record said that the decision of using ISA arrest against three of us was decided by Musa Hassan as the Head, Royal Malaysian Police.

The arrest of three of us by Royal Malaysian Police has made Malaysia a laughing stock of all freedom loving people in the civilized world. This is once again a classic case of selective persecution to protect the political hegemony of UMNO/BN. On my case, it was proven that the police had detained me under the ISA based on hearsay, concoction, deceit and without proper investigation. Musa Hassan should bear full responsibility over this miscarriage of justice.

If Musa Hassan had applied the same zeal, passion, dedication and commitment in wiping out the “mat rempits”, snatch thieves, property-related crimes, Malaysia today will be a much safer place to live. Instead, Musa Hassan has over the years, applied overwhelming force to suppress the legitimate human right to assemble and peaceful assembly. Police had used tear gas, chemically laced water cannons, brutal excessive use of force to suppress pro-democracy Malaysians gatherings such as the anti-ISA, BERSIH, HINDRAF marches and the Perak State Assembly peaceful protests. They carried no weapons, no objects of religious disrespect and yet they were subject to intimidation, arrest and police violence for alleged illegal assembly.

3. Selective law enforcement

In contrast to their zeal to clampdown on peaceful protestors, police officers stood by and watched last Friday as a group of some 50 protestors marched from the State Mosque in Shah Alam to the Selangor State Secretariat building in protest of the proposed building of a Hindu temple. The protestors carried with them the bloody head of a beheaded cow and made racist speeches and  threatened to spill blood. This is but one example of selective law enforcement by the police causing the public to have little faith in not just their ability, but their will to protect victims and punish offenders.

4. Questionable Relationship and Conduct With Web Power Sdn Bhd Over the “E-Police Force Solution” and the Proposed Rental of 31 Helicopters

In the year of 2007, Musa Hassan has proposed to use RM400 millions per year to rent 31 helicopters from Web Power Sdn Bhd for 30 years, whereas the original proposal by Malaysian Royal Police to the Ministry of Internal Security was only to purchase 8 helicopters.

Besides, Musa Hassan has by passed the Secretary General of Ministry of Internal Security and sent “letter of intent” and “letter of award” to the then Prime Minister cum Minister of Internal Security to purchase “E-Police Force Solution” that proposed by Web Power Sdn Bhd.

YB Lim Kit Siang, some other Members of Parliament and I, have raised the suspicious relationship between Musa Hassan and Web Power Sdn Bhd. However, the Minister has not been able to give a satisfactory answer to us, and yet, no action has been taken against Musa Hassan too.

With such a dismal track record, Musa Hassan should be terminated long ago. He does not deserve to have his contract renewed for he must bear full responsibility for the PDRM’s failure to perform their duty to rein in crime, protect human rights and enforce the law, as well as his questionable relationship with Web Power Sdn Bhd.

In choosing to renew Musa Hassan’s contract despite objections from law abiding citizens and civil society, the Federal government has gone against its vow of bringing changes and setting up KPI by the Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Najib himself. This is indeed a travesty of justice and make a mockery of Najib’s 1Malaysia – People First and Performance Now.

Teresa Kok