Opposition rejects IPCMC Bill, says Ismail Sabri

The Opposition will reject the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) Bill which is scheduled to be tabled in Parliament next week.

BN, PAS as well as GPS said they do not agree with the government's wish to form the IPCMC.

"The town hall session has been conducted by the special select committee for consideration of bills to collect feedback from stakeholders and the public, but it is purely cosmetics and acting," said Opposition leader Ismail Sabri in a press conference in Parliament today.

He said they were against the bill as the suggestions and objections from various quarters, including the police representatives, have not been taken into consideration or included in the recommendations from the committee.

The IPCMC was first mooted by a Royal Commission to deal with misconduct such as police brutality, custodial deaths, shootings and cover-ups of the police in its report published in May 2005.

On May 10 this year, the police finally gave their consent to form the IPCMC - 14 years after it was first proposed. 

Ismail Sabri also claimed there were legal experts who said the IPCMC goes against the constitution, but this view was not included in the final report from the committee.

"The Opposition bloc is of the opinion that the police force, numbering almost 150,000, have suffered and sacrificed for the rakyat and the country. They need to be supported, not oppressed by law," he said. 

"We promise to continue to defend the rights and welfare of the police. As such, the Opposition bloc will reject the motion which the government will table in the future." 

Previously, several groups have urged the government to postpone its plans to table the IPCMC Bill, such as Amnesty International and the Senior Police Officers Association.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Liew Vui Keong had said the report on the IPCMC Bill had been presented to all MPs yesterday morning. - Mkini