SUNDAY-27TH JANUARY 2008 - ACA TO HELP SCREEN ALL SABAH POLLS CANDIDATES

ACA to help screen all Sabah polls candidates

KOTA KINABALU:

The Anti Corruption Agency in Sabah will assist their headquarters in Putrajaya in screening all candidates from political parties who are expected to stand in the coming general election. Its Director Puan Latifah Mohd Yatim, said the screening process is important to ensure that only those who are free from any corruption charges or abuse of power would be nominated as candidates. In this respect, the ACA hopes that the Barisan Nasional as well as the opposition parties would submit lists of names of their potential candidates, which would be referred to the ACA headquarters. “To date, we have yet to receive any list. If we have, we will help our headquarters to carry out the screening process,” she said at a press conference, here, yesterday. Asked whether the ACA has their own list of potential candidates from political parties in Sabah who might be standing in the coming elections, Latifah said she would discuss the matter at the right time. Barisan Nasional has 59 seats in the 60-seat State Legislative Assembly. The other seat (Kuala Penyu) is held by an Independent. At the parliamentary level, BN has 24 seats while the Sandakan Parliamentary seat is held by an Independent too. Last week, ACA Investigations Director, Datuk Shukri Abdul announced that the ACA is ready to screen the lists of candidates, as given by political parties, standing in the coming elections.
Before, the ACA would only wait for the lists of candidates before studying their backgrounds and ensuring that they are eligible to stand in the parliamentary and state constituencies as set by the Election Commission and the ACA. The screening process is the
ACA’s responsibility to ensure only those eligible would stand, which is similarly done in officers promotion exercises in the Civil Service. Under the procedure, the candidate lists can be submitted to the ACA Headquarters through the ACA offices in the respective states. However, to date, no one has submitted any list.

SUNDAY-27TH JANUARY 2008 - MODEL POLICE TRAINEE INSPIRED BY THE UNIFORM AND HIS BROTHER

Model police trainee inspired by the uniform and his brother

KOTA KINABALU:

It was his fascination with the dark-blue uniform that drove 21-year-old Emmanuel Ganggau to join the Police Force. In fact, the Tuaran-born lad was greatly inspired when his eldest brother joined the force, and is now serving as a detective at the Kota Belud Police Headquarters. “I have always been interested in joining the police force. My parents, who are both farmers, had encouraged me throughout my six-month training and my eldest brother is my inspiration,” he said. Not surprisingly, Emmanuel made his parents proud when he was named the Best Outdoor Training Trainee award. The eighth child among nine siblings shared the proud moment with two other trainees, who were’ awarded the Overall Best Trainee and Best Academic Trainee, namely Yogenthiran Nair a/l Vasudenam and Mohd Khairulnizam Hamzah respectively. “My parents are both worried that I might be posted far from home but as a policeman, Jam prepared... that is what is expected of us; to work and protect the country for the good of the people,” he said.
Yogenthiran, 25, agreed with Emmanuel, stressing that the job poses challenges for each and every policeman, but he is determined to show a good example to his younger siblings and to live up to his father’s wishes. “I am the eldest among five siblings. My father is a policeman and is attached to the Criminal Investigation Department in Perak. He is my biggest inspiration and I hope to be as good as him one day,” he said. The Perak-born man said he never expected the training exercise to be tough, but he was determined and was ready for any challenges. “It is tough and tiring, but it is worth it.. .1 have lived my dream and I hope to be a good policeman,” he said. Khairulnizam, from Jengka, Pahang, on the other hand, has no police background. None of his family members are in the force, but the 25-year-old was so interested that he became an auxiliary policeman prior to the training. “My father was the most excited person when I was accepted to join the force. He was the one who drove me for my interview and sent me off to Sabah for the six-month training,” said the fifth child in a family of eight children. He described his passion to learn new things as the strongest point, adding that thanks to that, he was able to go through the challenging process and brought the honour to his family by receiving the special award. The three model trainees were among the 249 new constables, comprising 45 Sabahans and 204 West Malaysians who underwent the training at the Police Training Centre (PULAPOL) at the Kepayan Police Headquarters, yesterday. Among them, six are degree holders, 19 diploma holders, 39 (Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia), 136 (Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia) and 49 with Skills Certificate. Since PULAPOL started operation in 1994, it has produced 2,868 trained policemen. Special Branch deputy director from Bukit Aman, Datuk Othman Ali, who witnessed the trainees’ passing out parade yesterday reminded them to be disciplined at all times. “Remember the Royal Malaysian Police motto, friendly (mesra), quick (cepat), right (betul) before you step out from here (training ground), you must prepare yourself with the right skills and knowledge. “It is important for you to upgrade your skills, focus on improving yourself and be a good human capital. Respect the people and be friendly always so that every individual in the country will feel safe and protected,” he said.