Commitment runs deep among families in PPS crackdown

Tan Hooi San and her uncle Tan Bak Sun were among those detained for being PPS members. – The Malaysian Insider pic, September 8, 2014.

Among those arrested recently for being members of the Penang Voluntary Patrol Unit (PPS) are families who joined the organisation to help improve security and peace in their communities.

Those interviewed said their arrests have not discouraged them from sacrificing their time and energy to serve in the organisation, as all they have done was help keep their communities safe.

Tan Hooi San, 33, who works as a clerk by day, is now used to following her husband on nightly patrols in their neighbourhood in Prai. The couple joined the PPS in 2012 after the security in the area where they live deteriorated.

Her uncle Tan Bak Sun, 62, who has been with the PPS since it was formed in 2011, was arrested along with her on August 31 when both participated in a PPS march past during the official state-level Merdeka Day parade in George Town, Penang.

All 155 members of the contingent were detained by the police after the parade for allegedly being active in an illegal society.

Police had earlier announced that PPS was an unlawful body as it was not registered with the Registrar of Societies. The state has maintained that PPS is a legal body as it was instituted by the Penang government.

Hooi San said her husband, Alex Goh, a contractor, did not join the parade that morning and therefore, he was not arrested. However, he had to wait all day for his wife and her uncle to be released on police bail.

Asked how she felt during the arrest, she said: “I was not afraid because we had done no wrong".

“My parents were very worried. They asked why the police had detained their daughter. They asked what wrong I had done in helping to contribute towards public safety,” she said in an interview.

"We were only celebrating our country’s independence on Merdeka Day,” she added.

Her uncle kept a watchful eye on her throughout the arrest, she said.

Safer neighbourhood after patrolling

Hooi San said she and her husband had joined the PPS because of the many thefts and break-ins in Prai.

The PPS gave them a formal avenue to do voluntary work, in which they cooperated with the police and the Fire and Rescue Service Department (Bomba).

“The area became much safer after we did the patrolling,” she said.

“We only kept watch and reported anything suspicious to the police.

“My husband also responds to calls from Bomba during accidents and fires.”

Hooi San said she and her husband would still patrol their neighbourhood as individual citizens, saying that if they stop, the crime rate would surely rise.

Hooi San's uncle, Bak Sun, said the PPS would get all sorts of calls for help from residents. In each case, they would contact the police.

He remembered an occasion where oil had spilt onto the road after a bus had overturned in Chai Leng Park. He showed up with a PPS team immediately to help control traffic and prevent more accidents after a few motorcyclists had lost control of their motorcycles and crashed after hitting the oil slicks.

“We blocked the road until the Bomba arrived,” he said, adding that the situation was dangerous as the oil was flammable but their quick response averted any serious problems.

He also recalled another incident where he saw two suspicious-looking men on a motorbike in their neighbourhood, and followed them.

“I kept a safe distance behind them and saw them observing a man. They were about to rush towards him, as though to snatch his bag, when I revved my own motorbike. They turned around and saw me and quickly fled,” he said, adding that he then contacted the police.

“We are still willing to work with the police and other agencies in our individual capacities,” he added. “We will be on stand-by to help out in any emergency.”

Why illegal now?

Having cooperated with the police before, Hooi San does not understand why PPS members were arrested and are now accused of being an illegal body.

She said she and 30 other members had attended a briefing for the PPS by the local police at the Taman Inderawasih Hall in Prai on August 28 – just three days before they were arrested.

“The police said the PPS was very helpful,” she said.

“If we were illegal why would the police come to meet us? It was just a few days before we got arrested.”

Like his niece, Bak Sun said he felt he had done no wrong.

“I was, however, very worried for her and made sure she was fine,” he said.

“I have seen lock-ups before but this was her first time, but I am glad she is still strong.”

Married couple sacrifices personal time

Among those arrested were a married couple in their 30s who declined to be named.

The husband, who is a businessman, told The Malaysian Insider that they had joined the PPS from its early days.

“We joined to help the community. We gave our time during many urgent incidents like accidents and fires,” he said.

“Snatch theft was a big problem before, but after we carried out patrolling, the number of cases reduced,” he said.

He said both he and his wife, who is a clerk, sacrificed their time for society, and did not mind spending their nights patrolling to improve the safety and security of the neighbourhood.

“My wife was very scared when we were arrested. I was also worried for her,” he said.

"But we are determined that we did the right thing,” he said, adding that if given the opportunity to serve again – should the PPS be deemed a legal entity by the courts – they would do so without the slightest hesitation.

- TMI