Press Statement By Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng In Komtar, George Town On 30 August 2014.
The Penang state government will provide lawyers and legal funding to defend any PPS member who are wrongly arrested by police, not for any criminal wrongdoing, but merely for being a good Samaritan and helping the public. This follows the bullying threats by Inspector-General of Police(IGP) Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar who said that police will arrest members of the (PPS) if they continued their activities.
In a Bernama report yesterday, Khalid had given a new reason for wanting to stop PPS members from continuing with their activities of helping the public, by arresting them. Khalid claimed “PPS appeared to have strayed from its objective when it was established four years ago to serve the community but have now started hitting people, some journalists had been beaten, people who disagreed with them were also beaten… at least two police reports have been lodged by the public and the journalists concerned”.
Khalid is not only wrong but a liar for stating that PPS had strayed from its original objectives of helping the people and patrolling to protect public safety. One, PPS had never strayed from its orginal objectives of serving the public to start hitting people. If there are any criminal incidents involving PPS that are wrong, the Penang state government will co-operate fully with the police to take stern action. Penang State EXCO member Phee Boon Poh is personally in charge and has taken full responsibility to ensure that any wrongdoings by PPS members are punished.
Two, the Penang state government had said repeatedly that PPS was not registered as a society under Section 41 of the Societies Act but was established by the Penang state government. Why was no action taken against PPS when it was established four years ago and even co-operation given by the Penang police?
This is similar to Jawatan Kemajuan dan Keselamatan Kampung(JKKK) set up by the state government and the JKKK(Persekutuan) set up by the Federal government after the 2008 general elections through Kementerian Luar Bandar dan Wilayah. If JKKK and JKKK(P) is not wrong, why is there double-standard by the IGP to declare PPS set up by the Penang state government illegal?
Thirdly, the IGP admitted that when PPS had been established 4 years ago, PPS had done good in serving the public. In other words, PPS was legal 4 years ago but not now because PPS members were now hitting people. In that case, the IGP is saying that PPS is legitimate and legally established 4 years ago, but not so now because of a hitting incident between the public and PPS members.
Why should the nearly 10,000 members in PPS be punished for the wrongful acts of one PPS member? If that is the case, can the IGP answer whether the entire 120,000 police forced should be punished just because of the criminal acts of several policemen committing crime, beating up people, even causing death whether in lock-ups or during interrogations?
The Penang state government is willing to go to court to defend our rights and powers to form PPS just as we formed JKKK and also encourage our community to take responsibility towards community policing. Let the whole world see the Malaysian police arrest, not criminals, but PPS members for being a good Samaritan by helping people.Similarly the Penang state government guarantees that it will act sternly to punish any PPS member commiting criminal wrongdoings.
LIM GUAN ENG
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槟城州首席部长于2014年8月30日在乔治市光大发表的文告
槟城州政府将提供律师及法律费用，捍卫任何在没有犯罪行为下，正在执行社会良善与协助公众的时候，被警方错误逮补的槟州自愿巡逻队（PPS）。
槟城州政府将提供律师及法律费用，捍卫任何在没有犯罪行为下，正在执行社会良善与协助公众的时候，被警方错误逮补的槟州自愿巡逻队（PPS）。这项对策是随着全国总警长丹斯里卡立仗势欺人所作出的威胁。卡立威胁将逮捕继续活动的自愿巡逻队。
在昨天马新社的报导中，卡立给出要逮捕槟州自愿巡逻队的新理由，好让自愿巡逻队停止协助公众的活动。卡立声称“自愿巡逻队已经偏离了4年前它服务社会的成立目的，现在他们开始打人，一些媒体工作者遭他们殴打，不同意他们的人士也遭到殴打……至少已经接到公众以及媒体工作者的两项报案。”
卡立不只错了，而且还荒称自愿巡逻队偏离了原来协助人民及巡逻维护公众治安的目的。第一，自愿巡逻队从来没有偏离其原本的目的协助公众，开始只会打人。一旦自愿巡逻队有任何违法错误的事件，槟州政府将会与警方全力合作采取严厉的行动。槟州行政议员彭文宝个人将负全责确保任何违纪的自愿巡逻队成员受到惩罚。
第二、槟州政府已经重复说过，自愿巡逻队不是在社团法令第41条文下注册为社团，而是由州政府成立。为何这4年来没有采取行动对付自愿巡逻队，而且还获得槟州警方的合作？
自愿巡逻队就与州政府成立的乡委会JKKK及与联邦政府2008年后由乡村与区域发展部成立的乡委会JKKK(P)一样。如果，成立乡委会JKKK与联邦乡委会JKKK(P)没有错，为何全国总警长双重标准宣布由槟州政府成立的自愿巡逻队为非法？
第三、全国总警长承认自愿巡逻队已经成立4年，自愿巡逻队已经协助及服务大众。换句话说，自愿巡逻队4年前是合法的，但4年后因为巡逻队成员打人所以视为不合法。因此，全国总警长是在说自愿巡逻队4年前是正当与合法，但如今因为公众与自愿巡逻队成员之间发生殴打事件，所以就视为不合法。
为何当自愿巡逻队1名成员犯错，为数1万名的自愿巡逻队需要受到惩罚？如果是这样看待，全国总警长是否能回答，当一些警察涉及犯罪活动、打人，甚至在扣留所及盘问时致死他人，是否全数12万名的警员也要受罚？
槟州政府愿意上庭捍卫我们的权力及有权像成立乡委会一样地组织自愿巡逻队，以鼓励社区自发的维护各自社区的治安。就让全世界见证大马警方不是捉罪犯，而是反过来要捉执行社会良善协助公众的自愿巡逻队。同样的，槟州政府也保证，将会采取严厉的行动惩罚自愿巡逻队触犯刑法的行为。
林冠英