Public asked to tell police if out for legitimate reasons when stopped at roadblocks

MELAKA: Members of the public who are out for legitimate reasons should let police officers know this or they could be issued compound notices.

Melaka Tengah OCPD Asst Comm Afzanizar Ahmad said a 44-year-old woman from Durian Tunggal in the Alor Gajah district, who was issued a RM5,000 compound notice on June 13 after she told the cops that she was on the way to her sister's house in the Melaka Tengah district.

ACP Afzanizar said the woman told policemen she had driven from her home to her sister's house at Taman Merdeka (which is 8km away).

However, he said that the woman did not mention that she was also buying groceries when she was stopped.

"My men were just doing their job (and enforcing) the inter-district travel ban," he said on Sunday (June 27).

He said the woman from Taman Desa Idaman in Alor Gajah failed to provide a valid reason or supporting documents when stopped.

However, ACP Afzanizar said the woman could appeal the compound notice with the Melaka Tengah health officer.

On Friday (June 25), Kota Melaka MP Khoo Poay Tiong highlighted the plight of the woman who was stopped while driving along Jalan Taman Merdeka, a dual-carriageway road which in parts skirts the border of the Alor Gajah and Melaka Tengah districts.

She claimed that the driver was stopped for driving less than 100m from the border to get to a hypermarket.

Khoo said even though the woman's house and the hypermarket were in the Alor Gajah district, the road she used went through the Melaka Tengah district.

There was no mention if the woman was headed to her sister's house in another district.