Hamid should have been asked to stay until end of emergency, says Dr M

(FMT) – Abdul Hamid Bador should have been asked to remain as the inspector-general of police (IGP) until the end of the emergency, says former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Mahathir said he had appointed Hamid as the nation’s top cop in 2019 after noticing Hamid’s refusal to work with the Prime Minister’s Department, following his criticism of the 1MDB investigation in 2015.

“That is why when I became prime minister, I chose him, because he had principles and was attempting to clean up the police force,” he told Utusan Malaysia.

He said one would need five or six years to completely clean up the force, adding that Hamid’s two-year contract should have been extended.

Nevertheless, he said, he was proud that Hamid managed to identify certain corrupt police officers during his short tenure, although he believed there were many more top officials involved in corruption.

Hamid had accused home minister Hamzah Zainudin of interfering in police matters and “pushing for power” to determine where certain police officers should be placed.

According to Mahathir, he had never interfered in the appointment of positions for police officers during his time as prime minister as he had faith that the force was doing a good job.

He said he had accepted whoever was appointed by the Police Force Commission and presented their names to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.