BATU PAHAT, May 2 — DAP deputy chairman Gobind Singh Deo today called for a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to investigate various allegations of political interference within the police force that was recently made by outgoing Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Bador.

Gobind said among the allegations that needed to be investigated include political interference in the administration of the Royal Malaysian Police, the existence of cartels and acts of bribing politicians to jump parties.

“This is not a normal revelation. It is a revelation by the IGP himself, the issue of cartels and corruption in PDRM has a large impact because people are dependent on them.

“For example, if there are cartel practices and a culture of corruption, how can the people be confident in the police force system in this country?” questioned Gobind after officiating the Johor DAP 2021 Ordinary State Convention at the Grand Seaview Restaurant here today.

He was commenting on a recent statement made by Abdul Hamid where he asked politicians to stop meddling in police affairs, and said that a minister should not be the chairman of the Police Force Commission (PFC).

Abdul Hamid also urged the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to investigate political leaders who make party jumping a culture.

Gobind said the revelation was serious because it had a negative impact on the police force and an RCI should immediately be established to investigate the allegations. 

“When this matter was raised, the counter-statement issued by the government was that this matter would be investigated but internally. The MACC also stated that they were confident that the problem could be resolved internally.

“However this is a matter of corruption. If the allegation is true, then the government must take stern action. But if it is not true, an official statement must be issued and not let the matter hang on,” said Gobind, who is the Puchong MP.

Last Friday, Abdul Hamid alleged that Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin — who is the current PFC chairman — had interfered in police matters, causing the existence of different “camps” vying for power within the force.

He also said that the PFC had failed to look into many investigations of police misconduct, with its meetings only conducted four times a year, and in a supposedly unprofessional manner.

Earlier that day, Hamzah, in a surprise announcement, handed over the appointment letter to Datuk Seri Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani, who will be replacing Hamid as IGP tomorrow.

KUALA LUMPUR, May 2 — Malaysia reported its first case of the B.1.617.1 variant that experts believe to be a highly contagious strain of the coronavirus that causes Covid-19, Berita Harian reported today.

Public health authorities detected the strain after analysing a case involving an Indian national screened at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Selangor, according to Minister of Health Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba.

“We had detected the first Indian variant (of the coronavirus), with multiple mutations known as B.1.617.1, through an Indian national when we screened him at the KLIA,” he was quoted as saying.

The B.1.617 variant contains two key mutations to the outer “spike” portion of the virus that attaches to human cells, according to senior Indian virologist Shahid Jameel.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said the predominant lineage of B.1.617 was first identified in India last December, although an earlier version was spotted in October 2020.

The variant, also known as the “Indian variant”, is said to be highly contagious and is believed to have caused the sudden spike in infections worldwide.

BH reported Dr Adam as saying that the Indian variant was discovered alongside 30 other variants of concerns (VOC), including 27 of the B.1.351 variants from South Africa and three variants from the United Kingdom, the UK B.117.

“Unfortunately the IMR report confirmed the first case of VOC B.1.351 in Perak and Kelantan, involving clusters with 10 positive cases in the respective states,” he said.

“Through contact tracing efforts, we also recorded an additional seven cases of the B.1.351 variant and two cases of the UK B.1.1.7 in Selangor,” he added.

The discovery of another UK variant may also suggest there is already community transmission of the highly contagious strain, the paper reported. 

Dr Adham said the case involved a foreign national in Sandakan, Sabah, without any international travel record.

“In fact this is the first case of the UK variant found among someone who has no outside travel record, suggesting local transmission,” he was quoted as saying.

There are currently 48 cases linked to the South African variant B.1.351, eight cases of the UK B.1.1.7 variant, one case of the India B.1.617 variant and two cases of the Nigeria B. 1.525 variant.

PETALING JAYA: Former inspector-general of police Hanif Omar said no minister could order a commissioner of police (CP) against what they were “legally bound not to do”.

This is contained in a congratulatory message to incoming IGP Acryl Sani Abdullah, which is currently making rounds on social media.

Citing a common law case in the United Kingdom, Hanif said this was contained in a decision by Lord Denning in the case between the attorney-general and commissioner of police in 1973.

Hanif, who was the country’s top cop for 20 years, said only the CP could decide the priority he would place on any one of his duties.

“The police must bow down only to the law and not to any other person, albeit his own minister,” he said in a separate message to FMT.

Hanif’s message comes in the wake of outgoing IGP Abdul Hamid Bador’s revelation of home minister Hamzah Zainudin’s interference in police matters.

According to Hamid, an order had been issued by Hamzah to postpone the transfers of senior members of the force decided on earlier.

He also said Hamzah had been pushing to get power to determine where certain police officers should be placed.

Hanif, in his message, also recalled the time he had met Acryl Sani when he returned from his study leave in the UK to find that the latter and his wife were engineers but had chosen to be in the police force.

He went on to say that Acryl Sani had persevered in the force and was now going to helm it.

“Various (police) cartels are waiting for the action you will take,” he said, possibly alluding to Hamid’s allegation that there was a cartel comprising younger police officers who wanted to dominate the force.

BEIJING: China’s Shandong aircraft carrier task group recently conducted an exercise in the South China Sea, the country’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) said on Sunday.

China has repeatedly complained about US Navy ships getting close to islands it occupies in the South China Sea, where Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei and Taiwan all also have competing claims.

US carrier groups have sailed near Chinese-controlled islands in the disputed waters several times this year, drawing denunciation from China.

The exercise was described as routine training and part of the Chinese navy’s annual work plan. The Shandong entered service in 2019 and is the newer of China’s two carriers.

“It is completely legitimate and beneficial in improving the country’s ability to uphold national sovereignty and security,” Gao Xiucheng, a spokesman from the PLA navy said in a statement.

Gao said China hopes the world will see the exercise from an objective and rational viewpoint. He said the Chinese navy will continue conducting such exercises according to its schedule.

China’s navy said last month similar drills will come more regularly amid escalating tensions with the island of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its sovereign territory.

KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 ― The Human Resources Ministry will continue to review existing aspects of the country’s labour law so that it is appropriate and suits needs, said Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan.

He said that the move was aimed at ensuring that the country’s labour law was relevant to the current scenario in ensuring that workers’ welfare, safety and health rights were always protected.

“The government recognises the workers, who also helped to revive the country’s economy,” he said in a speech in conjunction with the 2021 Workers’ Day celebration broadcast by RTM today.

This is in line with this year’s Workers Day celebration, themed ‘Cultivating New Norms in the World of Global Employment’. Workers need to cultivate new norms of employment and act wisely in the face of a dynamic work environment.

The Occupational Safety and Health Master Plan 2021-2025, which is currently in its final stages, aims to strengthen safe and healthy work practices for the prosperity of the country, he said.

He said the implementation of the master plan would strengthen the strategic relationship of stakeholders in cultivating occupational safety and health practices.

Saravanan said that the country’s labour market position is expected to recover in stages from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The labour market is expected to remain on a recovery track, mainly supported by the recovery in global demand and the implementation of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme, he said. ― Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 — The federal government is reviewing the movement control order (MCO) currently in force, especially in states where Covid-19 cases are on the rise.

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the review is necessary to ensure the standard operating procedures remain in force, and to curb the proliferation of Covid-19 which is happening worldwide.

“The government is using the Hotspots Identification for Dynamic Engagement (HIDE) system to identify areas or premises which are at high risk for Covid-19.

“These premises will be ordered to shut down if it has been determined that a large number of Covid-19 positive patients have visited it,” he said in a statement this afternoon.

Muhyiddin said this approach is in line with the government’s decision to conduct targeted control and curbing of the spread of Covid-19. 

“Through this system, monitoring will be conducted daily to identify public areas with a high-risk for Covid-19.

“I call upon the public to always adhere to the established SOPs, to avoid crowded and tight places, in an effort to protect themselves and their families,” he said.

The number of daily Covid-19 infections across the country inches closer to 4,000, as the Health Ministry recorded 3,788 new cases yesterday. Thursday saw 3,332 new cases.

This is in comparison to the 941 daily cases recorded on March 29, the first time this year and the first since December 9, 2020, when 959 cases were reported.