Speculation swirls as Zahid FORBIDS queries on missing guns: WHY?

KUALA LUMPUR - Despite his claims to the contrary, it looks like Home Minister Zahid Hamidi is going all out to woo the hardliners in his Umno party so that they will vote him back as one of their vice presidents instead of giving a chance to the new challengers.

Either that or the Auditor-General's 2012 report has stumbled onto the crucial missing piece in the national jigsaw puzzle on what was the source of the firearms used by the gangsters and triad members during the recent and unprecedented spate of deadly shootings? Was it from the police?

On Friday, when asked by the press about the firearms mysteriously missing from the police armory, as discovered by the Auditor-Genera, Zahid was quick to pitch himself as the champion and defender of the 'maligned' police force.

Insisting that the weapons 'lost' by the police were due to human error and not foul play, Zahid rather high-handedly forbade any more discussion on the matter. He even picked on and publicly berated a reporter to emphasize his point.

"I think this is ridiculous behavior from a minister. It is blatantly self-serving. As the Home Minister, the police have to answer to Zahid in many matters but who is he to forgive their wrongdoings. Firstly, this was reported by the Auditor-General, not fabricated by the Opposition. Secondly, have the police carried out an internal probe, why are the findings not released," Opposition MP for Batu Tian Chua told Malaysia Chronicle.

"We are talking about RM1.3 million of the people's money that has gone missing due to neglect, corruption and maybe even theft. You can't blame people for thinking Zahid is trying to play to the Umno gallery but if he is, he should stop it. Instead of helping the Malay cause, it will only make them look corrupt and supportive of the 'I cover up for you, you cover up for me' mindset. This is a real stigma and guys like Zahid should realize it even though many of the grassroots may be too naive."

"On a more sinister level, is Zahid trying to hide something from the public by overreacting for the police? The accusations that there is a nexus between the underworld and the police is nothing new. It has been around for decades."

Umno is due to hold its election on October 19 and 3 VP posts are up for grabs. Zahid, who is one of the 3 incumbents, faces a challenge from Kedah chief minister Mukhriz Mahathir, former Malacca chief minister Ali Rustam and former Negri Sembilan chief minister Isa Samad.

What's going on? Can Zahid really be so 'obnoxious' and Khalid so 'dense'?

The Auditor-General's report 2012 had pointed out that RM1.3 million worth of assets had been lost by the police force. Handcuffs topped the list of missing items at 156, followed by 44 firearms and 29 police vehicles.

News of the missing weapons had raised an alarm that they could have fallen into the "wrong hands".

“We have been asking where did the gangsters get their guns? The Inspector General of Police and the Home Minister have even put up draconian amendments to the Prevention of Crime Act because they say they need to be able to detain people without trial in order to combat crime. They also launched Ops Cantas which I understand has rounded up more than 10,000 bad hats. Now it is laughable that the guns missing from the police armory may have fallen into wrong hands,” MP for Wangsa Maju Tan Kee Kwong had told Malaysia Chronicle in an immediate response to the A-G's revelation.

“The police must not only explain to the public but also tighten up their operations. Where are the checks and balances? The armory must surely have a log of details. Why wasn’t there discipline in maintaining what went in and out? How can we have guns disappearing without a trace? It is clear the police have been lax and they must close up the loopholes.”

But instead of quelling public misgivings, the Inspector General of Police Khalid Bakar created even more doubt and worry about police capability and transparency.

Like Zahid's comments today, Khalid's explanation bordered on the ridiculous, prompting fears that something improper had really happened and the authorities were now trying to cover up the matter.

"Of the 37 missing guns, ballistics reports show that none of them have been used by criminals," Khalid told reporters.

"The missing guns may not have fallen into the hands of criminals but could have fallen into the sea from boats ... and the weapons could not be recovered."

Malay machismo or giving the Malays a bad image of boorish backwardness?

According to Zahid, he has followed up on the A-G's report and asked Khalid to come up with a standard operating procedure as well as slap a surcharge on the errant officers involved.

Zahid also expressed hope that the missing items would not recur again next year as he did not want the "image of the police to be scarred by the Auditor-General's report".

"I know the loss was not due to a breach of trust, deviant acts or elements of bribery. It is because of carelessness and mistakes made in the line of duty," Zaid told reporters on Friday.

Before ending the press conference, Zahid made shocking remarks that critics say are revealing of his prejudice and offers a glimpse as to why his Umno party is often accused of being a party for low-brow hoodlums and denounced for racism, corruption as well as being trapped in a long-past time warp.

“Malaysiakini, write clearly yeah? Don’t write other things... Other reporters can ask questions, Malaysiakini may not,” Zahid said.

“You write everything that is only bad about us, about the KDN (Home Ministry)... By right, you shouldn’t have come today, you are shameful.”

Zahid then answered another question from a Chinese daily before taking another swipe at Malaysiakini.

“Okaylah, maybe Malaysiakini will write all sorts of things again... enough-lah,” and ended his tirade with “I don’t trust you at all...  Assalamualaikum!” before stalking off.