KUALA LUMPUR — Rules on the remand of suspects need reform as they are being unfairly applied against ordinary citizens, while enforcement officials under investigation get away with shorter remand or none at all, lawmaker Lim Lip Eng said.
The Kepong MP said there was bias in the treatment of citizens who were remanded “for days” over alleged minor offences.
“However, two policemen who were recently charged with stealing RM300,000 in Bukit Jalil were only detained for a day on 23 February without being suspended.
“Even more shocking, in January, an immigration officer who was caught with 12 foreign passports in his trousers at KLIA was not detained or charged, but was simply transferred!
“This is not just an issue of justice, but clear evidence of the existence of two levels of law enforcement,” Lim said in a statement today.
In contrast, he highlighted four cases of civilians who were remanded for three to six days over alleged offences such as theft of RM2,500, for stealing a mobile phone, stealing a car, and for stealing cows.
“Why are ordinary citizens remanded for longer than police officers who steal hundreds of thousands of ringgit? If senior citizens and mobile phone thieves can be remanded for up to four days, why are police only detained for a day and not suspended? Why are immigration officers who smuggled 12 passports still free without strict action?” said Lim.
Calling for immediate amendments to rules on remand, he said there cannot be “one law for ordinary citizens and another for those in uniform”.
“If ordinary citizens can be remanded for days, government officials and law enforcement officers involved in crimes must receive the same treatment.”
In the cases involving enforcement personnel that Lim cited, the immigration officer has been transferred to an immigration depot pending the outcome of an internal probe, while the two policemen who allegedly stole RM300,000 have been reassigned to a police control room while the investigation paper has been submitted to the deputy public prosecutor for further action.
Commenting on the police officers yesterday, KL police chief Datuk Rusdi Mohd Isa was reported saying that 21 statements have been recorded, including from the two officers aged 34 and 44, and who hold the ranks of corporal and inspector, respectively.
Rules on remand are provided for under the Criminal Procedure Code whereby a person cannot be detained for more than 24 hours without a magistrate’s order, and the period of remand cannot exceed 15 days.
Police must also show that remand is necessary to complete the investigation. – March 5 2025