Doubts raised over Putrajaya’s crime drop claim after violent attacks in Klang Valley

KUALA LUMPUR, June 9 — Two violent attacks in townships near the capital have reignited fears over public safety, leading a senior parliamentarian to question the federal government’s claim that crime has nosedived since the Government Transformation Programme (GTP) was launched in 2010. 

Bersih steering committee member Wong Chin Huat (picture) was left with a bloody face after being assaulted while jogging in Petaling Jaya this morning while teacher Teoh Soo Kim, 51, is fighting for her life after suffering severe head injuries when abducted on Wednesday. 

DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang claimed today these violent crimes in quick succession were “gruesome reminders that the Najib administration has failed to reduce crime and eradicate the fear of crime.” 

The Ipoh Timor MP questioned the credibility of Pemandu’s claim that crime dropped by 11.1 per cent last year with street crime seeing a 35 and 39.7 per cent reduction in 2010 and 2011 respectively thanks to the GTP which has crime reduction as one of its key result areas. 

“Malaysians still do not feel safe from the fear of crime whether in the privacy of their homes, or outside in the streets and public places. The alphabet soup of GTP, NKRAs, ETPs, PTPs popularised by the Najib premiership has no meaning to ordinary Malaysians. 

Lim also pointedly asked the police and home ministry to state what is being done “to ensure that Wong can jog safely near his home and Teoh can safely go about her life without fear of being a victim of a dastardly criminal attack.” 

He contrasted this with the mobilisation of over 14,000 policemen on April 28 to deal with Bersih’s rally for free and fair election. 

“The continued demonisation of 200,000 Malaysians regardless of race, religion, class, region, age or gender who had gathered peacefully for a common national cause for a clean election have made the failure to reduce crime in urban areas even more unacceptable,” he added. 

Wong, a lecturer at Monash University, had said he “has been a victim of police violence” and today became “a victim of police failure in deterring crime.” 

“Where are the police when we are not demonstrating?” he wrote on social media platform Facebook, referring to clashes between police and supporters of Bersih’s April 28 rally for free and fair elections. 

Bersih’s planned sit-in at Dataran Merdeka had descended into chaos after some protestors tried to enter the historic square which the court had barred to the public and the past month has seen authorities and those backing the rally blaming each other for the violence that resulted. 

Several dozen members of the public have come forward with allegations of police brutality while the police and home ministry insist they have evidence that some who attended the rally wanted bloodshed and even death. 

The government has set up a panel to investigate the April 28 violence, but the choice of former police chief Tun Hanif Omar has been widely criticised after he compared the movement to communism and accused the organisers of an attempted coup.