When security may not guarantee safety
WE
are supposed to feel secure and safe with round-the-clock security at our home
or office.But
that confidence seems to have been shaken if we go by recent incidents.Security
guards had hogged the headlines lately or just in the past two weeks. And
looking objectively at the concomitant factors, it may well be just the tip of
the iceberg.In
a tragic bank robbery, operations officer Noazita Abu Talib, 37, was shot dead at
the AmBank branch in Subang Jaya by the banks security guard who later fled
with an undisclosed amount of cash.In
another robbery, a Filipino security guard of a jewellery shop in Setapak threatened
his colleagues with a pistol before walking off with a tray of gold chains. He
was later nabbed while waiting to board a plane to Sabah
but his girlfriend, believed to keeping a large stash of the gems, is still at
large.Both
security guards are reportedly from Sabah and
holding fake MyKads.At
home, a security guard at a Welfare Department shelter was arrested after two
under-aged female residents lodged police reports, claiming he had raped them.
The guard could also have raped four other under-aged girls staying at the same
shelter.“We
are supposed to provide a place that can give them a sense of belonging. Yet,
something like this happened when they are under our care. We feel angry,
betrayed and frustrated,” Welfare, Women and Family Development Minister Datuk
Fatimah Abdullah was reported as saying.According
to the Home Ministry, there are more than 700 security companies hiring over
220,000 guards in the country. The
Security Services Association Malaysia (SSAM), however, gave a conflicting
figure of over 280,000 -- with 180,000 foreigners working “legally” as security
guards and making up 53 per cent of the total employed in the profession. Illegals
and locals make up the remaining 11 per cent and 36 per cent respectively.SSAM
Sabah Zone chairman Najmuddin Mohd Ibrahim was quick to point out that the cowardly
acts of the two security guards (allegedly from Sabah)
should not be generalised as being typical of the security service industry nor
labelled as “one bad apple spoiling the whole barrel.”Najmuddin
who also operates a security service company, said his firm only confirms the
appointment of applicants after a probationary period covering training, physical
and fitness assessment where a pass is compulsory, identity verification and
criminal records checklist. The
hired security guards will undergo constant training throughout their
employment.According
to Najmuddin, the successful applicants are not mere guards but, more
importantly, also “trained security officers” who are to be recognised as the
third line of defence after the army and the police. Such a high standard of
professionalism is necessary to earn the confidence and trust of the public.While
the need to hire competent and honest security personnel should not be
compromised, the point is how could public angst be assuaged when weaknesses and
flaws still managed to get past the verification process in the first place?SSAM
has already revealed there are known illegal security guards -- 11 per cent of
the total number or 30,800 of them. However, another national newspaper
reported on Nov 6 that there are about 150,000 of the 400,000 security guards
are illegal.What
are the Home Ministry and SSAM doing about these people? Also, how many of
those classified as “legal” are holding their jobs with fake MyKads?Immediately
after the incidents involving security guards, Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr
Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the National Registration Department will conduct a
biometric examination on identification documents of all security personnel in
the country.It
is already bad enough to know that our security providers are not verified and
cleared of criminal records before we put guns in their hands but what Zahid revealed
is even more disquieting -- that his
ministry has received information certain companies have used security and
firearms-handling licences for other purposes. He
warned that permits of security companies will be withdrawn if they were found
to have been engaging in activities other than those stated under the licensing
conditions.He
did not say how long ago he received this lead but announcing it only after the
robberies does imply a seeming indifference to the issue.So,
now, even companies issued with licence to hire private security guards have
problems – apparently arising from the failure to strictly enforce the rules
and ensure only good agencies are allowed to set up shop.Surely,
its not wise “to mend the fold after some of the sheep have been lost” (Chinese
idiom -- wang yang bu lao)?Will
the incidents that put a stain on the security service industry serve as a
wake-up call for the Home Ministry and other authorities concerned so that the
victims deaths at the hands of desperados masquerading as security guards will
not be in vain?The
time is ripe for the Home Ministry, the National Registration Department and
the Police to do a thorough background check on the 280,000 security guards in
the country and for the security companies themselves to verify their own
representatives.Several
politicians and activists in Sabah have alleged there could be as many as 1.5
million unqualified immigrants out there holding Malaysian citizenship
documents issued in Sabah since the 1970s. It
is time to solve this problem festering in Sabah
once
and for all.There
is acute urgency to look into the job description of security guards to ensure they
stick to the scope of duties they are engaged to perform. Its
no secret that banks are hiring guards to transport piles of cash. Well and
good if this falls within the ambit of their responsibilities but should be
avoided if not contractually spelt out.Now
is the time to know that not everyone in uniform with a gun can be called a
trained guard.Now
is the time for SSAM to maintain constant liaison with law enforcement agencies
and keep close tabs on “blacklisted” employees.Lest
it be overlooked, now is also the time
for security bosses to reward guards who have devoted the best part of their
lives to the company by treating them well so that they will not succumb to
“makan gaji sahaja” syndrome but will instead go beyond the call of duty while
doing their jobs. For
after all, wang yang bu lao can also
be taken to mean “its never too late to mend.”To
give credit where it is due, I think I will be plainly out of line if I dont
put on record the dedication shown by the phalanx of guards in maintaining security
24/7 on the grounds of our work place.It
is with all sincerity that I appreciate the diligence of the guards both in my
place of stay and at our office.
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