'More SB officers now than during Emergency'

Going by the number of special branch (SB) officers in the police force, Malaysia under Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak appears to be worse off than during the first period of Emergency.

Noting this in the Dewan Rakyat today while debating the Budget 2014 proposals, Steven Sim (DAP-Bukit Mertajam) said the SB unit had 459 people in 1954, then making up 2 percent of the entire force.

However, in 2012, there were 8,200 SB officers in the police force - up by more than 3,000 officers compared to the period under the Abdullah Ahmad Badawi administration.

"During the Emergency, the SB was a unit specifically for intelligence operations and work related to the Emergency. Is Malaysia under (Najib) worse than during the Emergency?" asked Sim.

[More to follow]