A Police district chief in Pahang — no novice in policing by any definition — has been arrested by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on suspicion of receiving more than RM1 million in bribes between 2017 and 2022 to "protect" unlicensed entertainment outlets and massage parlours in the district.
But the MACC has come up against a legal wall in getting the officer remanded. The magistrate's court in Kuantan yesterday rejected the graft-buster's application for a remand order because it was made under Section 117 of the Criminal Procedure Code instead of under Section 67 of the MACC Act 2009, according to a lawyer acting for the police officer.
This may be a technical point. On May 15, the Temerloh High Court ruled that MACC must rely on the MACC Act 2009 if it wants to remand a suspect. The MACC is appealing the decision. But a point needs to be made. Being arrested isn't the same thing as being found guilty.
Throughout the history of Malaysian criminal law, one legal presumption stands out: every person accused of a crime is considered innocent until proven guilty.
Be that as it may, arrests of senior police officers aren't just today's story. Or just what happens in Pahang. Arrests of senior police officers are an all-Malaysia every-now-and-then story.
Illegal activities such as these not only exist, but are thriving because those who are tasked with getting rid of them turn "protectors" of underworld figures for a fistful of ringgit and more. The thugs know who the corrupt and corruptible men in blue are. The police must get to them before they do.
Already, some officers in charge of police departments (OCPDs) are unhappy about Bukit Aman's surprise raids on such outlets. These trendy-mourners of OCPDs want to be given an early warning of the raids so that they can alert their paymasters. Old habits die hard, especially for those who have been wrong so long that they think they are mighty.
On May 15, Federal Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay reminded such wayward officers of their Aku Janji integrity pledge to the force.
Take action or we will take action against you, was his message. But this threat must be given the bite it deserves if the police want to stop the rot from taking root, if it hasn't already.
Senior officers being part of protection rings is a sign of a rot going wild. When Ayob Khan was Johor police chief, he promised to take errant police officers to court without having to go through the Integrity Department.
We do not know how many such officers are counting bars in prison, but Ayob Khan's threat in May and his promise as Johor police chief earlier are clear signs that protection rings within the force are a growing threat to the police force and the nation.
The police must not forget that public confidence is a critical element in policing. Every time there is a report of a police officer, not to mention a very senior one at that, being arrested for having links with criminal organisations, public confidence in the men in blue goes south.
We do not deny that the police are doing their best to get rid of the corrupt men in blue. Perhaps they have to do better than their best.