Lim Guan Eng wants confirmation that 11 PPS members have criminal records

The Penang DAP Government today wants confirmation of the claims by Penang Police Chief Datuk Abdul Rahim Hanafi that 11 of the 156 members of the Volunteer Patrol Unit detained last Sunday have criminal records.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state government was also working to confirm whether there was a police report or accusation made about the 11 members when they were voluntarily carrying out their duties in the PPS.

"The Penang state government stresses that no member of the PPS will be protected if they have committed an offence or violated the law, but they are fully subject to the law.

"The people of Penang can show proof of the good work done by the PPS, especially in helping the public and the police by carrying out community police work," he said in a statement here today.

He added that state government reiterated that the PPS had never received any written complaint from the police.

Yesterday, Abdul Rahim said 11 of the 156 Penang PPS members detained on Sunday had several previous criminal records including intimidation, robbery, theft, culpable homicide not amounting to murder, offences under the Customs Act and being members of a triad.

Lim said if there were complaints, the police should have informed the state exco who was also Chairman of PPS, Phee Boon Poh, or he himself.

Meanwhile, in SHAH ALAM, the Yayasan Pengaman Malaysia (Pengaman) described the police detention of the PPS members as being justified for the sake of public safety.

Its chairman Tan Sri Norian Mai said the public should consider the detention of the 156 PPS members as an appropriate effort to uphold the constitution and the law, as well as to ensure harmony.

"This incident (the detention of the PPS members) should be seen as a lesson to any party to understand the provisions of the relevant laws before doing anything that affects public interests," he said in a statement today.

Last Sunday, police detained 156 PPS members including chairman of the unit who is also chairman of the State Welfare, Caring Society and Environment Committee Phee Boon Poh for failure to heed the warning not to conduct any activities after the unit was found not to be registered with the Registrar of

Societies.

Seri Delima State Assemblyman RSN Rayer was also detained to assist in the investigations connected to the formation of the PPS by the Penang state government.

Norian, who is a former Inspector-General of Police, said the PPS had been confirmed to be not registered with the ROS and this was a violation of the law.