Patrolling equipment worth RM10,000 for seven PJ RAs

Section 11 Residents’ Association patrol group getting ready to patrol their neighbourhood.

THE nightly voluntary patrols by the Petaling Jaya Section 11 Residents Association (RA) have benefited their neighbourhood in many ways part from keeping their neighbourhood safe.

“We also take care of what is required of the place,” said Section 11 RA patrol coordinator Kenneth Pillay of the group that call themselves the Section 11 Walking Team or Swat.

“If we spot illegal rubbish heaps, faulty streetlights, abandoned cars, potholes and hygiene problems, we will report them to the relevant authorities.

“The patrols also allow us to get to know our neighbours and form fellowships with them, plus we get to exercise as well.”

The Swat team has been running their nightly patrols for 2½ years, with six to 20 volunteers participating per session.

Pillay said the multi-racial group comprised both men and women, with a 60:40 ratio of senior citizens and working adults.

“We used to get reports of petty and snatch thefts as well as break-ins, but such incidents have dropped since we started the patrols.

“The police are quick to respond to our calls when we need their assistance,” he said.

Section 11 RA was one of seven residents groups that was presented with patrol equipment by Bukit Gasing assemblyman R. Rajiv.

The others were Section 1 RA and Rukun Tetangga (RT), Gasing Indah RA, Section 10 RA, Section 14 RA and Section 17 RA.

“It costs RM10,352 in total to buy patrol equipment such as luminous vest, expandable baton, torchlight, whistle and bamboo stick,” said Rajiv, adding that each RA or RT came up with their own items they wanted.

“Today’s programme is the first time a concerted effort is done for several residents groups. The previous ones were done ad hoc for individual RAs or RTs. Previous requests included bicycles and walkie-talkies.”

Rajiv said the sponsorship of patrol equipment from his office served as a show of support for the voluntary patrol groups and complemented the RM6,000 per neighbourhood allocation by Petaling Jaya City Council for the Petaling Jaya Neighbourhood Safety Team Programme.

“All the patrols are done on the community’s own initiative, and some carry out the patrols with the police,” he said.

“While the police hasn’t released official statistics, I have been informed through theSafe City meetings that the crime rate in the Bukit Gasing constituency is relatively lower than the Petaling Jaya average, and that this constituency is not in the PJ blacklist.”

Rajiv reminded the patrol groups to continue functioning as the eyes and ears of their community and to inform the police immediately should they spot anything suspicious in their neighbourhood.