Give the police a break

There are many things in Malaysia that you would be hard-pressed to find anywhere else in the world.

Besides the famous "No contest for No 1 and No2" dance in Umno, the other equally well-known but no less absurd phenomenon is the lodging of police reports by members of the public who are not even remotely connected to the matter in question.

When Karpal Singh said something about the constitutional powers of the Sultan of Perak, droves of Umno-related groups lodged several hundred police reports. Karpal is now on trial for sedition.

Every time someone does not agree with something that has taken place in the public sphere, he or she lodges a police report, whether it's about dog washing, beauty contests or even a surau not being properly constructed or used.

It would seem that in this country, if you want to draw public attention to the "seriousness" of the matter in question, then many police reports are lodged - either that or a public figures gets involved, forcing the police to investigate the matter regardless of its merit.

The latest incident by Umno Youth prompted the involvement of no less a person than Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin himself.

When a DAP leader from Sarawak said something against the Barisan Nasional government, not only was a police report lodged but the minister declared that what had been uttered was seditious in the extreme. I call this the Lodging of Reports, Malaysia-style.

This is not, however, a funny matter. It has become ridiculous and needs to stop. It's true that for the police to act or investigate any criminal matter, there must first be what is known as the First information Report.

This is true of other Commonwealth countries too. The difference is that in these countries, people do not rush to lodge police reports about matters that are already in the public domain or have been widely reported in the media. People are assured that if it constitutes a criminal act, then the police will act accordingly.

After all, the police on their own volition can commence the investigation if there appears to be a violation of the law. They do not need anyone to lodge a report since they can initiate the preparation of the first report themselves.

They can investigate any matter based on available information and do not need pressure from anyone, particularly political leaders. In a private matter the situation is different. If someone stole my car then I would have to lodge a report because without it, the police could not possibly know about the incident. But if I were to go on TV and say that the prime minister was an agent of the CIA, then the police need not wait for any report from the public to start an investigation.

The DAP leader from Sarawak, for example, made a public statement so the police are well aware of what was said. If they thought something was amiss they probably would have initiated their own investigation.

Policemen who say they cannot investigate anything unless a member of the public lodges a report are being irresponsible and lazy and are looking for excuses not to investigate.

To regain its past glory, our police force must not only be efficient and competent but must also regain the public's trust. For this to happen, politicians from both sides must stay away from influencing the police force's day-to-day decision-making process.

They need to give the police force space to investigate any matter that comes within public knowledge on its own volition, without making public statements or asking their supporters to lodge reports. These politicians should in fact discourage the public from lodging these reports, because such action could be interpreted as exerting pressure on the police.

The police can be impartial if politicians allowed them to be. The police do not need to be directed or supervised by politicians in any way. In fact, allowing this plethora of police reports arguably puts the police themselves in a difficult situation: can they simply ignore a minister's statement, or do more work just because public pressure is exerted?

Before you lodge a police report, ask yourself if the police already have the information that you are providing. If the answer is no, then you have a duty to file the report. On the other hand, if what was said or done is already in the public domain then do not waste your time. The police should do it as a matter of course, if the matter warrants an investigation.

Whether we can trust the police to act professionally is another matter altogether, but lodging police reports Malaysian-style will not contribute towards achieving that goal. - August 17, 2013.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.