The police have placed 154 members of the Penang Voluntary Patrol Unit (PPS) under arrest, after detaining them this morning.

According to lawyer Ramkarpal Singh who was at the Northeast Police District in Jalan Pattani, the police confirmed this but did not furnish any charge.

"We are not informed what is the basis or grounds of the arrests," said the Bukit Gelugor MP ( left, with yellow tie ).

He said these member will probably be detained overnight and remand will be applied tomorrow.

"(We feel) there is no necessity to hold them overnight, as they have all given their full cooperation to the police and did not cause any disruption," he said.

Earlier the police hauled up about 250 PPS members after they attended a Merdeka parade at the Esplanade this morning.

 

The group, dressed in their purple vests, were brought to the Beach Street police station located only a few metres away from the Esplanade at about 10.07am, according to Wong Hon Wai, political secretary to Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.

 

"They were all invited to the police station to give their statement," said Wong, who is also DAP's Air Itam assemblyperson.

 

According to PKR's Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin, the group was sent to the Northeast District Police Headquarters for their statements to be taken.

 

They were taken there in police trucks, said Sim.

 

The group was heavily guarded by FRU personnel in headgear armed with batons and shields while they were at the police station, he added.

 

Several Penang Pakatan Rakyat assemblypersons accompanied the men at the police station.

'So much for national unity'

 

"This is outrageous! Is this national unity? These men have just attended the Merdeka parade, what will happen to the spirit of voluntarism?" Sim ( below ) asked, upset with the incident.

 

Met at the police station, PPS chairperson and state executive councillor for caring society and environment Phee Boon Poh said lawyers will handle the matter and the state will provide assistance to their families.

 

It is learnt that the group has been hauled up for violating the Societies Act.

 

Last Tuesday, Inspector General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar deemed the state-sanctioned PPS " illegal " claiming the entity was not registered with the Registrar of Societies (ROS).

 

Khalid has warned about possible arrest of PPS members but Lim has defended the group, saying it is a state government agency, and like the Village and Security Development Committee (JKKK) do not need to be registered under the ROS.

 

Lim said the state government will provide legal assistance to PPS members if the police carry arrests.

 

The PPS shot into the limelight when businessman Ong Eu Soon, 51, lodged a police report claiming he was assaulted by two PPS members in Air Itam.

 

The two men however lodged police reports claiming that it was Ong who first attacked them.

Merdeka crackdown in Penang

154 PPS men arrested in Penang Merdeka swoop

Surrender before we raid homes, IGP warns PPS

Police chief wants probe on tweets insulting him

IGP Khalid likens PPS to 'gangsters'

See you in court on PPS, Guan Eng tells IGP

Crackdown continues, exco who heads PPS arrested

Guan Eng's house hit by Molotov cocktail

MCA: Arrest those who attacked CM's house