Two months ago, RM1 million worth of drugs went missing from the Johor police headquarters while 60 officers were on duty. Four policemen and 15 civilians were arrested for the theft in less than two weeks.
===============
Tue, Sep 30, 2008
The Straits Times
Visiting JB? You'll be safe, says Johor police chief
By Nur Dianah Suhaimi
Welcome to Johor Baru. There is no need to fear for your safety.
This assurance comes from Datuk Mokhtar Shariff, who became Johor police chief in January this year.
'We are doing aggressive policing so there's no need for Singaporeans to be afraid,' he told The Sunday Times in an exclusive interview last week.
At least 60,000 Singaporeans visit Johor Baru (JB) each day and while the majority of visits are incident-free, a few recent high-profile ones have made some Singaporeans wary about going across the Causeway.
Three weeks ago, a group of Ferrari and Maserati owners from Singapore found themselves the target of highway robbers while driving in a convoy to Genting Highlands.
680m
The amount in ringgit that the Malaysian government has pumped into building infrastructure and buying state-of-the-art equipment for the Johor police.
340,000
The number of Singaporean drivers who have not paid their traffic fines in Malaysia.
34
The number of Singaporeans caught for drug-related offences in Johor this year. Twelve were caught for drug trafficking.
643
The number of officers who joined the Johor police this year. They hope to recruit 2,000 in the next few years.
100
The number of police patrol cars on JB roads at any one time.
60,000
The estimated number of Singaporeans who travel to Johor Baru each day.
256
The number of Singaporeans who were victims of crime in Johor this year.
177
The number of Singaporeans whose motorcycles were stolen in Johor this year.
Since Datuk Mokhtar came on board in January, the deputy commissioner has introduced initiatives such as:
- A 24-hour hotline manned by an assistant superintendent for Singaporeans in distress;
- A website, www.polisjohor.gov. my, for Singaporeans to give feedback;
- A mobile police station near the Causeway;
- More policemen, in uniform and plainclothes, at shopping places favoured by Singaporeans in Johor Baru.
Next month, he plans to send his men to distribute fliers about the hotline - 07-2212999 - to Singaporeans at the Causeway.
'Each day, 60,000 Singaporeans come to JB. We want to make sure they feel secure and return again because they bring in money to the state,' said Datuk Mokhtar, 50, at the Johor police headquarters last Wednesday.
The Malaysian government also does not want security issues to hinder the development of an economic corridor called Iskandar Malaysia, 45 minutes from Tuas in Singapore.
Iskandar Malaysia, formerly known as the Iskandar Development Region, is a grand plan to turn 2,200 sq km of the southern state of Johor into an industrial and tourist zone.
It aims to leverage on its lower costs and proximity to Singapore and plans to attract RM20 billion (S$8.3 billion) in investments by 2010.
To woo investors, the Malaysian government has pumped in some RM680 million this year to strengthen Johor's policing infrastructure, said Datuk Mokhtar.
The money has paid for an additional 643 policemen, 500 patrol cars, 143 police motorcycles and, for the first time, two helicopters which will do sky patrols.
The Iskandar region will have three police district headquarters.
Datuk Mokhtar believed that Singaporeans' negative impression of the crime situation in Johor stemmed from bad press.
'Dangerous places are war zones like Afghanistan or Iraq. But JB is not like that. In reality, we are one of the three states in the country which brought down crime last year,' he said.
The crime rate in Johor dipped by 0.55 per cent last year. He admitted this was a small figure but was a start nonetheless. The rate for solving crime cases is 40.8 per cent, he added.
Of the 256 crimes reported by Singaporeans in Johor from January to August this year, 177 cases - or 69 per cent - involved motorcycle theft. Snatch, vehicle and petty thefts made up the rest.
Datuk Mokhtar acknowledged the need to weed out corruption within the police force.
Two months ago, RM1 million worth of drugs went missing from the Johor police headquarters while 60 officers were on duty. Four policemen and 15 civilians were arrested for the theft in less than two weeks.
'We are perturbed this happened. But we are not crying over spilt milk. We have learnt from this incident,' he said.
In the first six months of this year, 120 Johor policemen were taken to task for various disciplinary reasons, he said.
He revealed that his men are checked for any extra cash in their possession before and after their work shift.
Since July this year, 12 religious leaders have also been seconded to the police to warn officers about the evils of corruption.
'There are only a handful of crooked policemen but we understand that the police job has its temptations. These men face many challenges daily,' he said.
The force, he said, needs information to act on errant officers. Just post the date, time and location of the incident on the Johor police website.
'There will be no compromise for these officers. We need to show that we're in control,' he said.
[email protected]
This article was first published in The Sunday Times on Sept 28, 2008.
===============
Tue, Sep 30, 2008
The Straits Times
Visiting JB? You'll be safe, says Johor police chief
By Nur Dianah Suhaimi
Welcome to Johor Baru. There is no need to fear for your safety.
This assurance comes from Datuk Mokhtar Shariff, who became Johor police chief in January this year.
'We are doing aggressive policing so there's no need for Singaporeans to be afraid,' he told The Sunday Times in an exclusive interview last week.
At least 60,000 Singaporeans visit Johor Baru (JB) each day and while the majority of visits are incident-free, a few recent high-profile ones have made some Singaporeans wary about going across the Causeway.
Three weeks ago, a group of Ferrari and Maserati owners from Singapore found themselves the target of highway robbers while driving in a convoy to Genting Highlands.
680m
The amount in ringgit that the Malaysian government has pumped into building infrastructure and buying state-of-the-art equipment for the Johor police.
340,000
The number of Singaporean drivers who have not paid their traffic fines in Malaysia.
34
The number of Singaporeans caught for drug-related offences in Johor this year. Twelve were caught for drug trafficking.
643
The number of officers who joined the Johor police this year. They hope to recruit 2,000 in the next few years.
100
The number of police patrol cars on JB roads at any one time.
60,000
The estimated number of Singaporeans who travel to Johor Baru each day.
256
The number of Singaporeans who were victims of crime in Johor this year.
177
The number of Singaporeans whose motorcycles were stolen in Johor this year.
Since Datuk Mokhtar came on board in January, the deputy commissioner has introduced initiatives such as:
- A 24-hour hotline manned by an assistant superintendent for Singaporeans in distress;
- A website, www.polisjohor.gov. my, for Singaporeans to give feedback;
- A mobile police station near the Causeway;
- More policemen, in uniform and plainclothes, at shopping places favoured by Singaporeans in Johor Baru.
Next month, he plans to send his men to distribute fliers about the hotline - 07-2212999 - to Singaporeans at the Causeway.
'Each day, 60,000 Singaporeans come to JB. We want to make sure they feel secure and return again because they bring in money to the state,' said Datuk Mokhtar, 50, at the Johor police headquarters last Wednesday.
The Malaysian government also does not want security issues to hinder the development of an economic corridor called Iskandar Malaysia, 45 minutes from Tuas in Singapore.
Iskandar Malaysia, formerly known as the Iskandar Development Region, is a grand plan to turn 2,200 sq km of the southern state of Johor into an industrial and tourist zone.
It aims to leverage on its lower costs and proximity to Singapore and plans to attract RM20 billion (S$8.3 billion) in investments by 2010.
To woo investors, the Malaysian government has pumped in some RM680 million this year to strengthen Johor's policing infrastructure, said Datuk Mokhtar.
The money has paid for an additional 643 policemen, 500 patrol cars, 143 police motorcycles and, for the first time, two helicopters which will do sky patrols.
The Iskandar region will have three police district headquarters.
Datuk Mokhtar believed that Singaporeans' negative impression of the crime situation in Johor stemmed from bad press.
'Dangerous places are war zones like Afghanistan or Iraq. But JB is not like that. In reality, we are one of the three states in the country which brought down crime last year,' he said.
The crime rate in Johor dipped by 0.55 per cent last year. He admitted this was a small figure but was a start nonetheless. The rate for solving crime cases is 40.8 per cent, he added.
Of the 256 crimes reported by Singaporeans in Johor from January to August this year, 177 cases - or 69 per cent - involved motorcycle theft. Snatch, vehicle and petty thefts made up the rest.
Datuk Mokhtar acknowledged the need to weed out corruption within the police force.
Two months ago, RM1 million worth of drugs went missing from the Johor police headquarters while 60 officers were on duty. Four policemen and 15 civilians were arrested for the theft in less than two weeks.
'We are perturbed this happened. But we are not crying over spilt milk. We have learnt from this incident,' he said.
In the first six months of this year, 120 Johor policemen were taken to task for various disciplinary reasons, he said.
He revealed that his men are checked for any extra cash in their possession before and after their work shift.
Since July this year, 12 religious leaders have also been seconded to the police to warn officers about the evils of corruption.
'There are only a handful of crooked policemen but we understand that the police job has its temptations. These men face many challenges daily,' he said.
The force, he said, needs information to act on errant officers. Just post the date, time and location of the incident on the Johor police website.
'There will be no compromise for these officers. We need to show that we're in control,' he said.
[email protected]
This article was first published in The Sunday Times on Sept 28, 2008.
