PETALING JAYA: Pakatan Rakyat will set up a special committee to push for the establishment of the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) once Parliament convenes on June 24, DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang announced today.
The Gelang Patah MP said this in the wake of three deaths in custody in the past 11 days.
Describing it as an “outrageous” record, Lim said this proved that the Enforcement Agencies Integrity Commission (EAIC) had failed to resolve the issue.
“We will set up a committee comprising two members of parliament from each party in Pakatan, and they will be responsible for coming up with the bill to establish the IPCMC.
“But we need enough members of parliament to support this. We have 89 MPs from Pakatan, and we need another 23 to obtain a simple majority so that we can set up the IPCMC,” he told a press conference here.
He appealed to BN parliamentarians to stop thinking along party lines and throw their weight behind the bill, pointing out that it was for the common good of the people.
“MIC have said four of their MPS want to see the IPCMC set up, while in MCA, vice-president Gan Ping Sieu said he supported it,” Lim said.
“So we hope they can prepare a statement of their support within the next two or three weeks. We hope that the MPs do not want deaths in custody to continue happening,” he added.
Lim vowed that Pakatan would ensure the IPCMC would become its main agenda once parliament convenes next month.
Eight people have died in police custody in this year alone. The latest was P Karuna Nithi, 43, who was found unconscious by policemen on duty at around 6.30pm on Saturday in the Tampin police station lock-up.
Ironically, Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had just one day before Karuna Nithi’s death assured that investigations on custodial deaths would be conducted simultaneously by the Bukit Aman police special committee and the EAIC.
Zahid also assured investigations would be conducted without fear or favour against police personnel who abused their power.
“We would not side the perpetrators,” he said in the wake of criticisms against the special committee on custodial deaths.
Last Tuesday, Bukit Aman announced the formation of a special committee led by Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar to curb deaths in police lock ups.
The committee that is expected to start functioning soon would among others, monitor the safety aspects and health condition of those detained in lock ups.
Central lock ups in five locations have already been equipped with CCTV cameras, intercom, lawyers room, court room, identification parade room for suspects and a pantry.
Source: FreeMalaysiaToday
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