The desirability and the suitability of an independent body to oversee the conduct of police in Malaysia / Nabilla Rosli and Siti Nazirah Zohri

The police professionalization is essentially a police community transaction. Community attitudes towards the police are crucial, because professionalism implies public certification of professional competence, with commensurate status, privileges, and responsibilities. Public concerns regarding the image and the efficacy of the Royal Malaysia Police reached serious levels due to the public perceptions of the Royal Malaysia as one of the most corrupt of government agencies. The nature of police work which involves wide ranging authority and discretionary power is extremely susceptible to corruption unless there is an effective system of supervision to hold police officers to account for breaches of rules and procedures. Upholding human rights needs to become a central pillar of policing, one of the key and essential criteria by which police actions are scrutinised and the foundation of the ethical code for policing. The Federal Constitution provides The Police Force Commission the power to exercise disciplinary control over members of the police force. It is, however, clear that the commission have not done an adequate job to check abuses within the police force. A new, independent and external body is necessary to be established to assist and advise the Police Force Commission to perform its functions. It is a mechanism of
transparency and accountability, as restoring integrity involve external watchdog.