LAWMAKERS have done police a huge favour by not extending the validity of a detention provision under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma), renowned criminologist P. Sundramoorthy said.

He said that by removing the provision for 28 days of detention for suspects, the MPs had reconstructed a positive image of the force that has had a negative perception over the years.

He said the now lapsed detention provision under sub-section 4(5) of Sosma is no longer relevant.

“We need to lift the image of police, which has been tarnished by a lot of negativity.

“Sosma is one of the laws that has stained the police image and it is time to fix the image,” the Universiti Sains Malaysia academic told The Malaysian Insight.

“Having such a preventive law was not taking the police force forward but instead taking them backwards. In many cases, a suspect was not even charged after his detention, so this drew a lot of criticism on the police itself,” he added.

Sundramoorthy said police can still investigate cases without the 28-day detention as is allowed under Sosma.

“If you asked me 20 or 30 years ago, I might say that we need a check and balance and maybe we need that provision, but now I am saying we definitely do not need it. In modern-day policing, it is long overdue.

“They can actually amend the criminal procedure code (CPC) on national security issues and in fact, terrorism is an act of criminality under the CPC.

“We have a lot of educated police officers in the force. Many have doctorates, even. What is important is that we assign the right police officer to the right case,” he said.

Last Wednesday, opposition lawmakers voted against a motion to extend the validity of sub-section 4(5) of Sosma that allows suspects to be detained for up to 28 days under Sosma.

Eighty-six MPs voted against the motion while 85 were for the motion. Fifty lawmakers were absent.

Sub-section 4(5) of Sosma must be reviewed every five years and will cease in July unless both Houses agree to extend the clause.

The provision was first enforced on July 31, 2012, and renewed for the first time in 2017.

Sosma cases are complicated 

Meanwhile, independent crime analyst Shahul Hamid Abdul Aziz said cases involving Sosma are far more complicated than ordinary crime cases.

Therefore, he said, investigators need more time to prepare a perfect case against a suspect.

“Sosma cases are sometimes not straightforward and are complicated. So the 28 days are so much needed by the police,” he said.

Shahul said that under the CPC, courts can grant a maximum of 14 days for suspects to be detained for questioning.

“But in certain cases they’ll get maybe seven days or less. So when the cases are brought to court, it is hard to prove it to the judge.

“I think it is the responsibility of all lawmakers to prioritise national security rather than trying to be populist,” he said. – March 29, 2022.