Police must act immediately if misconduct reported, says Saifuddin

KUALA LUMPUR: The police should take several measures immediately following a report by graft-busters on unaddressed cases of misconduct at several agencies, says the Home Minister.

Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said there should not be any denial syndrome as integrity was always top priority for the force.

"We have to respond positively to improve the agency (in terms of integrity) so that the situation will not worsen.

"We must identify the areas that can be improved upon," he told reporters after attending police's Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration at the Police Training Centre (Pulapol) here on Tuesday (May 9).

He was commenting on a report quoting Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki as saying that over 500 reports of alleged misconduct by government personnel had been ignored by their respective department heads.

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While immediate improvement was a must, Saifuddin said it must be stressed that cases of misconduct involved only a small percentage of the police force.

"While several personnel may be involved in misconduct, more than 120,000 police personnel and officers are performing their duties with full dedication. We should not diminish their motivation.

"Be that as it may, I am confident the police leadership will make the necessary improvements," he added.

"Integrity is a vital component in the training of police personnel from the point of recruitment itself.

"Efforts to improve integrity will be ongoing for as long as the individual is on the force," he said.

Saifuddin said it was important to take any remedial measures as the police must earn the confidence of the people.

"We must respond to the MACC report immediately.

"We will study it and make the necessary improvements," he said.

Saifuddin added that the police had a specific department to investigate cases of wrongdoing and misconduct.

Among those who attended the celebration were Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani and Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh.

An online portal reported that police comprised the majority of the 553 unaddressed cases, accounting for 125; followed by the Road Transport Department (JPJ), with some cases dating back as far as 12 years.