KOTA BARU: Police have suggested the public to use tracker applications on mobile phones to help them monitor the movements of their family members.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain said this was a precautionary measure which could also help the authorities find those who go missing.
"As parents, they should know the movement of their children. This is important so that parents can know their children's whereabouts at all times.
"As a father, l have also used such applications. I want to know their (my children's) movements, even though l am the IGP," he told reporters.
Asked whether police need to set up a special task force to handle missing persons cases which appear to be on the rise recently, Razarudin said there was no need for now.
"This because we have detected that not all the cases reported were actually cases of missing persons.
"Instead, we have found that some of these were really cases of people running away from home. These happened due to several reasons, including due to family problems.
"Therefore, there is no need to establish a special team even though many cases of missing persons are reported," he added.
Razarudin urged the public to lodge police reports immediately if they find they cannot contact any family member.
"If before, a police report was only allowed to be made after 24 hours but now it is no longer so.
"The public can lodge police reports immediately if any family member is found missing and cannot be contacted," he said.