PARLIAMENT | About 75 percent of complaints which were received by the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) involve police personnel since it was set up in 2004 until to date.

‘’Meanwhile, the rest involved 20 other enforcement agencies,’’ said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Liew Vui Keong in his written answer which was highlighted in the Parliament website yesterday.

He was answering a question from Azalina Othman Said (BN-Pengerang) who wanted to know the rationale of the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) Bill stipulating that the EAIC be abolished when the commission is set up.

EAIC was reportedly set up in February 2004 following public anxiety over the increase of deaths in detention, allegations of police brutality and abuse of power.

Azalina also asked, seeing the scope of EAIC was broad to monitor other enforcement agencies other than the RMP, whether the government was planning to send the IPCMC bill to the Special Select Committee For Consideration of Bills so that certain improvements were made.

Liew said although the scope of EAIC was seen as wider in monitoring more enforcement agencies, the power of EAIC was limited seeing it could only make recommendations to the disciplinary authorities (DA) of the enforcement agency in question.

He said IPCMC was specified only for police personnel because it was designated with new power, namely, the power to impose discipline in line with the proviso to Article 140(1) of the Federal Constitution which allowed another body other than the Police Commission to discipline the police.

‘’As such, the scope and usage of IPCMC are only applicable for the police in line with the aspiration of IPCMC to become (DA) to the RMP as permitted by the Federal Constitution.

He said the Dewan Rakyat which convened on Oct 7 had unanimously agreed to send the IPCMC bill to the Special Select Committee For Consideration of Bills for purpose of improvements.

The government would also conduct a series of engagements with stakeholders, interested parties and the media to obtain their views and suggestions for improvements.

- Bernama