KUALA LUMPUR: The Police Force Commission (SPP) should not be chaired by a minister in order to prevent any political interference, says Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Bador.
The outgoing Inspector-General of Police said a minister should not interfere in the management of the police force.
"A minister should focus on matters involving policies, not deciding who would be CPO (state police chiefs) or (Bukit Aman) directors.
"I propose for former chief justices or former judges to helm the SPP instead of a minister," he said during his last press conference on Friday (April 30) before he is scheduled to retire on May 3.
Abdul Hamid lamented his frustrations over the interference of Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin in the SPP.
"Since the beginning, he had insisted on making the decision on who gets appointed.
"It is hard for me as a leader to operate and arrange the deployment of personnel and officers with such intervention.
"I have discussed the matter with the minister, the Prime Minister and the Chief Secretary to the Government.
"It is not good for the country if a minister still insists on having such a power," he added.
The proposal to have a non-politician as the SPP chairman was made previously but to no avail, he added.
"If a minister chairs the SPP, political elements will seep into the commission.
"The SPP also needs to have more meetings as currently, it only meets four times a year resulting in various pending disciplinary cases," he said.
Abdul Hamid warned any party against using the police force as their political tool.
"Don't play politics. Think of the future and welfare of the police force.
"I am saying all this as I feel the public needs to know what is going on with the police force. I have no intentions of extending my contract, I will hand over the reigns to Datuk Seri Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani on Monday," Abdul Hamid said.
The IGP said he had no issue with Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who was also the Home Minister when Pakatan Harapan was in power.
"(When he was Home Minister) he didn't push his way around, instead he only said a few words.
"If it comes from a minister, as IGP, I would know what to do.
"The problem started after the change of government last year. I have bad blood with the Home Minister (Hamzah) ever since as each have their own style of doing things," he said.
Abdul Hamid said he will leave it to Acryl Sani to remedy the situation.
"I will leave it to him and to other officers to toe the line.
"I have cleared the path in battling corruption and increasing the integrity of the police force, he (Acryl) just has to continue on the same path and improve upon what I have done," said Abdul Hamid.
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