Press statement(2) by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjong ,Lim Kit Siang, in Petaling Jaya on Saturday ,September 30 ,1995:
Police should stop playing games with “semantics” and demonstrate to Malaysians that it has nothing to hide by stopping all examination of Irene Fernadez and announce its support for an independent inquiry into the Tenaganita allegations
The Bukit Aman Police today issued a statement and claimed that it was not “interrogating” Tenaganita director Irene Fernandez but merely “recording statements” from her in connection with Tenaganita’s allegations of maltreatment of illegal immigrants at the immigration detention camps.
The police should stop playing games with “semantics” and should demonstrate to Malaysians that it has nothing to hide by stopping all examination of Trene Fernadez and announce its support for an independent inquiry into the Tenaganita allegations .
The Police had earlier tried to give Irene Fernandez a very bad media image by giving the impression that she was running away from the Police when asked to give statement in connection with the Tenaganita’s memorandum on the conditions in the immigrantion detention centres, when the Police knew that this was not only untrue, dishonest and but unworthy of a Police Force which is jealous about its reputation of independence, impartiality and integrity.
The Bukit Aman Police owes Irene Fernandez an apology for dishonestly trying to give Irene Fernandez a bad mass media image!
The Police has said that it wants to investigate into Tenaganita allegations of corruption at the immigration detention camps. This is no business of the Police to investigate and any such investigation should be conducted by the Anti-Corruption Agency and not the Police.
In this connection, the ACA must explain why it has allowed the Police to usurp its powers and jurisdictions and why ACA had not initiated investigations itself!