Perak police chief: Complaints against Rohingya should be channelled through authorities

IPOH, June 12 — The public is advised not to take action against the Rohingya ethnic group themselves but rather channel any complaints or relevant information to the police for appropriate action.

Perak police chief Datuk Mohd Alwi Zainal Abidin said any misconduct by the Rohingya ethnic group should be reported to the authorities and action will be taken in accordance with the existing law.

“If there is misconduct by the Rohingya, they (the public) should file a police report first so that the police themselves can take the appropriate action,” he said at a press conference after witnessing the handover ceremony of the Perak Commercial Crime Investigation Department Head at the Senior Police Officers’ Mess in Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah here today.

Mohd Alwi said, however, that so far his department has not received any complaints about criminal activities or misconduct committed by the Rohingya ethnic group in the state.

He said this when asked to comment on a campaign to capture Rohingya in Perak which has been circulating on social media for the past few days.

Asked about the town of Manjung being among the most identified as having the Rohingya ethnic settlement, Mohd Alwi said his party would hold discussions with the state government if there were matters that required assistance or action from the authorities.

“We will always conduct regular monitoring of the Rohingya ethnic group,” he said.

Yesterday, Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad was reported to have said that the rapidly developing Manjung district with the construction and maritime industries is believed to have the largest Rohingya ethnic group in the state with most of them holding United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) cards.

Saarani said the increase in the number of ethnic groups originating from western Myanmar could indirectly have implications for the local people, including security.

Earlier, deputy head of the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (Investigation/Legal) Supt Mohd Ridzuan Nor Ihsan was appointed as the acting head of the Perak Commercial Crime Investigation Department, replacing ACP Mohd Fahmi Visuvanathan Abdullah who will retire on June 18. — Bernama