When cops give you the runaround

 

If you are the victim of a criminal act, or when you witness a crime being committed, it is generally accepted that it is your responsibility to report the incident to trigger a detailed police investigation.

Time is of the essence, and most people would like to think that the faster a report is lodged, the better the chances of the police catching the criminal. The clues are still fresh and there is a likelihood that the suspect could still be in the vicinity.

Although their first inclination is to seek justice, some Malaysians are reluctant to lodge police reports because they feel that making one is as stressful as being the victim of a crime itself.

Several hours are spent at the police station, and one is sent from pillar to post that, in the end, one just gives up.

In some instances, people claim that speaking to the media, to highlight a criminal act, is actually more productive.

The fear that the dress code is a prerequisite for being able to lodge a police report is disturbing.

On Dec 8, China Press reported that Winson Shim and his family had dined at a hawker centre in Bukit Tambun, Penang, when they found that someone had broken into their car. His wife’s passport and RM800 were missing.

Thinking that he was doing the right thing, Shim, 34, rushed to the Simpang Ampat police station to report the theft, but was stopped by the sentry who, after consulting police officers at the station, directed him to lodge his report at the Tambun police station.

Shim pleaded his case and was asked to change into long trousers.

Many Malaysians believe that the dress code for lodging police reports is getting out of hand. Earlier this year, a woman was not allowed to enter a police station because her Bermuda shorts were deemed inappropriate.

Then IGP Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani was reported to have supported the police officer on duty and said there had probably been a “misunderstanding” between the policeman and the woman.

In both cases, a crime had been committed or an accident had taken place, and the victims had done their level best to report them. The woman in shorts had been involved in a collision between her car and a truck.

The reputation of the police force is at stake, but it appears that some policemen are too absorbed in the dress code to fulfil their responsibility and duty to the general public.

In Shim’s case, the thief who broke into his car could possibly have still been loitering in the area, and if the police had acted swiftly, he could have been apprehended.

In the woman’s case, one wonders what would have happened if she had witnessed a hit-and-run accident and was not involved in the collision with the truck.

Any delay would have meant that the suspected driver could have got away, and the victim could have suffered serious injuries or even death, but the policemen, it seems, were more concerned about preserving the modesty of the person lodging the report.

It does not matter who the person lodging the report is, or if he or she is wearing shorts or a maxi dress. The priority is for the police to take down the details and go to the crime scene to investigate.

PDRM’s job is not to police what citizens wear at the police station. They are supposed to discharge their duties and not impose their moral beliefs on others.

Many years ago, my friends and I went swimming off Lutong Beach in Miri, and returned to our picnic spot to find that all our possessions had been stolen. Our towels, dry clothes and shoes were gone.

A friend had fortunately kept the keys to his house and car in a waterproof pouch on a belt round his waist. All five of us drove to the nearest police station and lodged our police reports clad only in our wet swimming gear. No-one batted an eyelid or demanded that we return to the house to change our clothes.

Is the dress code when visiting government offices a recent phenomenon, or does it only apply to the peninsula? - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.