LABUAN, Nov 18 — The Sabah and Labuan police contingents are gearing up for a surge in crime cases, which they anticipate could still be under control, amid the relaxation of movement restrictions.
Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Idris Abdullah said a directive had been issued to all district policcrimee chiefs in Sabah and Labuan to be fully prepared with effective strategies in crime preventive measures.
“We anticipate a surge in all types of crime cases as Sabah and Labuan are now under Phase Four of the National Recovery Plan (PPN) with all economic sectors allowed to resume operations.
“We have had a meeting on crime prevention, and I have stressed to all officers in charge of police districts (OCPDs) to prepare and plan organised and systematic crime preventive measures, our approach is more on a smart deployment,” he told reporters after launching the Zakat Collection Centre (PPZ) Tithe Monthly Deduction Campaign for policemen, at a hotel here today.
Idris said crime hotpots and ‘soft targets’ across the state and Labuan need to be monitored closely and that crime prevention efforts in these areas must be intensified.
“Areas that have high crime intensity and relatively unprotected or vulnerable top crimes [soft target] spots have to be identified for preventive measures…we are also intensifying community policing in ‘soft targets’ with residential committees in maintaining public safety,” he said.
Idris noted that the crime scenario had changed from Phase One to Four of the PPN with a steady increase in crime cases.
“Phase One, Two and Three of PPN were alright with a significant drop in crime cases (as movement restrictions were imposed) but we have seen a steady increase in Phase Four but still under control,” he said.
Meanwhile, on the campaign, Idris said police in the three federal territories – Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan – distributed RM421,670.00 from zakat (tithe) collections to needy police families from 2019 to date.
The campaign is to encourage police personnel to make monthly deductions for the zakat fund.
Sources: BERNAMA