Penang’s PPS is illegal: ROS

PETALING JAYA: The Voluntary Patrol Unit (PPS) in Penang is illegal, said the Registrar of Societies (ROS).
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said he received a letter, signed by ROS registrar Mohammad Razin Abdullah today, which pointed out that PPS is not registered under the Societies Act 1966 (Act 335).
"Therefore, the organisation is deemed an establishment which is in violation of the law under Section 41 of the same Act," he said in a statement.
Khalid said the police will investigate activities carried out by PPS and will take action according to the law.
PPS was formed in 2011 by the Pakatan Rakyat-led Penang state government in an effort to combat crime around the state.
With an annual allocation of about RM1.5 million, PPS has some 250 teams with over 7,000 registered members.
Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng had said that the objective of the unit is to assist police and local authorities in ensuring safety to make Penang the safest state in Malaysia.
PPS made headlines last week, when several of its members allegedly beat up a 51-year-old social activist at a dinner function in Air Itam in Penang over criticism of the state government on Facebook.
In early 2013, a PPS member assaulted a Guang Ming Daily pressman and destroyed his camera. The member was expelled and was fined by a court.