Number of foreigners as police officers is ‘for society to decide’
Important for personnel to know, connect with foreign community to police them well
There are some roles, however, that are so physically demanding that even many men cannot meet the requirements, he pointed out.
“If a woman officer one day is able to make it up to that level ... there will not be any barrier to taking her in,” he said. “We will not reduce the requirements in order for that officer to make it to the elite unit because she has to show she’s as good as the next person.”
In his speech, Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Teo Chee Hean said the SPF should systematically devise operational concepts and new capabilities to tackle emerging challenges such as cyber crime.
SPF ponders hiring foreigners?
Another panellist, Police Operations director Lau Peet Meng, said that, from an operations standpoint, diversity within the force is good to keep up with changes in society.
“We need, to some extent, some sensitivity to understand our foreign population,” he said. “The danger is if it’s (purely Singaporean), you will lose touch with the people you’re policing.”
He added: “I think it’s very important for the police, operationally, to be aware that we do need some kind of interaction with foreigners, some kind of understanding and some people who actually know those communities well and are able to interact with them, connect with them ... Whoever’s living in Singapore, we need to know them well in order to police them.”
More foreigners to be police officers?
Whether Singapore can accept foreigners as police officers is “for society to decide”, the Singapore Police Force’s (SPF) manpower director, Tan Hung Hooi, said.
Mr Tan said the “kind of numbers, as an organisation and as a society, we are prepared to take in … is something that still needs to be further deliberated on”. He was speaking to about 200 junior college and polytechnic students at the Police Workplan Seminar on Friday.
In a Straits Times report on 3 May 2014, it said: “The police manpower director, SAC Tan Hung Hooi, said the force already hires foreigners, but these recruits will have to become Singapore permanent residents before they can don the blue uniform.”
No change in recruitment policy: S’pore Police
The Singapore Police Force (SPF) is maintaining its current recruitment policy, said its spokesman. Superintendent Ho Yenn Dar, Assistant Director, Public Communications (Public Affairs Department), SPF, said that other than the Gurkha Contingent, the police recruits Singaporeans as regular officers.
He added that “a small number of permanent residents (PRs) who have shown commitment to serve are also recruited.”
“The police also have PRs who are serving their National Service and as volunteers in the Volunteer Special Constabulary,” Supt Ho said.
First, I am concerned the foreign police officers may come from a culture steeped in corruption — even among civil servants — and about whether they would be susceptible to bribery here, which would affect the integrity of our police force.
Second, in the event of a riot or protest here, would they side with their compatriots instead of doing what they should do?
Third, if these police officers do not speak English clearly or well enough or cannot comprehend locals, such a communication breakdown could have unintended or disastrous repercussions.
I read with concern the report “Number of foreigners as police officers is ‘for society to decide’” (May 3). Our police officers are one of the pillars of Singapore’s internal security.
While it would be good to have some diversity of cultural practices, the primary objective must not be compromised. What is most important is the integrity and dedication of any officer to execute the role of guardian and law enforcer.
Foreigners should not be allowed to join the police force unless a close monitoring system is in place, especially in sensitive areas, and the number should be capped. The most dangerous threats are from within any organisation.
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The thinking of a non nation state
The hiring of foreigners, ie PRs, as police officers is like a natural thing in this non nation city state. According to Police Operations Director Lau Peet Meng as quoted in Today paper, “diversity within the force is good to keep up with changes in society…We need, to some extent, some sensitivity to understand our foreign population,” he said. “The danger is if it’s (purely Singaporean), you will lose touch with the people you’re policing.”
What this city state is doing is Uniquely Singapore as no other Asean state will do the same, to recruit foreigners into their police force so happily and so comfortable with their presence. In Malaysia, they are even paranoid in having too many of the non bumiputra citizens joining the police force for political and security reasons. In our global city, no nation concept, free open border, free immigration policies, there is absolutely nothing to worry about with foreigners in the police force. We even have foreigners turning new citizens sitting in Parliament. But that is only a natural development when anyone living in this island, citizen or not, has a share of this place.
Andrew Loh wrote an article, ‘More foreigners to be police officers’ in the Online Citizen. His article highlighted the growing number of foreigners employed in the SPF and the Auxiliary Police as well as the unarmed security officers. In the latter, out of 60,000 unarmed security officers, 35,000 are foreigners. When asked in Parliament, Chee Hean did not exactly reveal the number of foreigners in the Police Force but confirmed that foreigners have been recruited since 1970.
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Police Ops Dir open to idea of recruiting FTs for SPF
However, one of the seminar panelists, Police Operations Director Lau Peet Meng was more open to recruiting foreigners for SPF.
He said:
We need, to some extent, some sensitivity to understand our foreign population. The danger is if it’s (purely Singaporean), you will lose touch with the people you’re policing.
I think it’s very important for the police, operationally, to be aware that we do need some kind of interaction with foreigners, some kind of understanding and some people who actually know those communities well and are able to interact with them, connect with them… Whoever’s living in Singapore, we need to know them well in order to police them.
It is not known if other first world countries also hire foreigners, that is, citizens of other countries, to help in policing foreigners residing in those first world countries. Also, Mr Lau should take note that policemen in some third world countries are highly corrupt:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_ChinaIt is not known if other first world countries also hire foreigners, that is, citizens of other countries, to help in policing foreigners residing in those first world countries. Also, Mr Lau should take note that policemen in some third world countries are highly corrupt:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_India
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_the_Philippines
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Is Singapore Safe with Foreigner as Policemen?
I think our government must be desperate for more policemen to even suggest this ludicrous idea of having foreigners to join Singapore Police Force.
There is now an overwhelming numbers of foreigners in Singapore that our Police force cannot cope and they are so desperate, they now looking into this dangerous ideas of having foreigners armed with firearms to protect Singapore. The recent India riot is the best example of how a large influx of rowdy foreigners could scare off our policemen during the riot.
Like it or now, in the mind of foreigners, they just want to earn Singapore dollars and retire in their homeland. Do you think they will give their all to protect the country with their lives? Worse still, if there is any conflict between Singaporeans and other nationalities (which is inevitable due to the angst in this crowded island), the foreigner policemen will definitely protect their own nationalities. I am disturbed by the Police Operations director Lau Peet Meng who commented that
“diversity within the force is good to keep up with changes in society.” “We need, to some extent, some sensitivity to understand our foreign population,” he said. “The danger is if it’s (purely Singaporean), you will lose touch with the people you’re policing.”read more
The real reason behind recruiting foreigners as police officers and the obvious danger
During a Police Workplan Seminar on May 2, the question of recruiting foreigners as police officers was brought up during a dialogue with about 200 junior college and polytechnic students.
Question: If the SPF was serious about engaging Singaporeans, why seek the opinions of an immature audience? A decision appears to have already been made and any future consultation will be all ‘wayang’.
PAP’s policies have already allowed foreigners to steal locals’ lunches and now it expects citizens to be agreeable to foreigners having the authority to control us? This must be a sick joke.
Foreigners In Uniform
Police Operations Director Lau Peet Meng is one in favour of recruiting foreigners for the Singapore Police Force (SPF). From what he says, it appears that permanent residents can currently be (and probably are already) recruited to police Singaporeans, "what kind of numbers, as an organisation and as a society, we are prepared to take in... is something that still needs to be further deliberated on”.
Perhaps Lau should also consider what kind of foreign talent will be wearing the blue uniform. We could end up with these types of law enforcers gainfully employed at their respective domicile countries.
Rashid Rangiris, the Philippines Bureau of Immigration (BI) officer who roughhoused a female Chinese national at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 on May 5. Jiang Huixiang was barred entry into the country because she was allegedly teaching in the Philippines without required papers. A cell phone video making the internet circuit shows her being dragged along the floor by the immigration official. Next, the official is filmed shoving her with brutal force and slapping her several times before pushing her into a nearby room and out of the camera's field of view.
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CISCO officer charged with taking S$10 ‘coffee money’
He probably never fathomed that taking S$10 in “coffee money” would ultimately cost him S$100,000, but that is what could happen to a Certis CISCO officer.
Kalaiarasan Muniandy, 22, is facing the maximum fine after he was charged in court yesterday with corruptly obtaining a gratification of S$10 from a domestic helper in return for a favour.
On Jan 19, Kalaiarasan was carrying out his duties at Paya Lebar MRT Station when he spotted Ms Hasna, a domestic helper, drinking water at the station’s premises.
Former ICA officer jailed for accepting bribe
A former officer from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) was jailed today (May 9) for four months, and ordered to pay a penalty of S$50 for accepting a bribe.
25-year-old Ezhar Kamis, a former ICA specialist attached to Tuas Checkpoint, pleaded guilty to the offence which took place sometime in March 2011.
He is the last of four officers to be charged for their involvement in a scheme masterminded by another former ICA officer.
related:
Ex-auxiliary cops jailed for CBT of $146,900
Two Certis Cisco auxiliary police officers entrusted with transporting cash for bank machines helped themselves to the money instead and were jailed on Tuesday for dishonestly misappropriating $146,900.
Palwinder Singh Harjan Singh, 21, and Theywa Subramaniam, 27, pleaded guilty to criminal breach of trust committed at Plaza Singapura, Orchard Road, on Sept 17 last year.
Theywa, who also admitted to money laundering, was jailed for 36 months, while Palwinder's sentence on the single charge was 30 months. Both are Malaysians.
Foreigners in our Midst
– Today: Meritocracy is the operative word in hiring cops, foreigners or not
– Musings From the Lion City: Foreign-born Singaporeans, Not PRs
– Likedatosocanmeh: Real reason behind recruiting foreigners as police officers
– Just Speaking My Mind: Is Singapore Safe with Foreigner as Policemen?
– Five Stars and a Moon: Longing for a belonging
– Singapore Notes: The Grapes Of Wrath
– Singapore Notes: Foreigners In Uniform
– Unseen Spore: Road Rage: Suntec City Red Vespa AngMoh Mark Franklin
– TOC: Booting out the (local) boys in blue – is that the key issue?
– Today: Before deciding on hiring foreigners as cops, consider these issues
– Sgpolitics: PM Lee needs to clarify his statement that Spore belongs to everyone
– Loh & Behold: Why Do Condo Ads Show Local Women with Ang Mo Men?
– Spore Alternatives: My Dear PM, Singapore doesn’t belong to Foreigners
– My Singapore News: The thinking of a non nation state
– Yours Truly Singapore: False pretext of nipping the bud
– TOC: The racial, foreigner discomfort
– Jeremy Chen: Rental Discrimination in Spore: More Economics than Skin Colour
