COMMENT In the wake of recent terrorist attacks on Central Jakarta, the threat of Islamic State (IS) are getting closer to home.

In fact, inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar is fully aware of this. Therefore, his focus should be on the real threats of suicide bombers who will inflict pain and death on innocent citizens of this country, instead of deploying precious manpower and resources to monitor the social media in 2016.

The social media is a platform synonymous for people’s gossip. Since time immemorial, gossip has always been part of society; therefore, it would be a waste of time monitoring it over the social media.

Although I do not agree that he labelled fellow Malaysians as “immature citizens”, I take it that he should also realise that these “immature citizens” will eventually mature over time. And, it is important for people to engage in lively debates and critical thinking, if we want to see the citizens becoming mature.

Therefore, to shift the focus on Internet policing is, in my opinion, a real waste of time and resources, especially when there is a need to further beef up surveillance of potential terrorists in the country.

These are the real threats to national security which the police are equipped to handle, not some young 19-year-olds who want to criticise recent comments by cabinet ministers about university students going hungry. Please leave them alone.

Instead, focus on fighting crime and terrorism. As citizens, we are more interested to know, for example, whether our police are well-equipped to fight against terrorists, or investigate the explosion during the trial of former opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, and bring the culprits to face justice.

It would have been more commendable if he had said that the police would step up the cybercrime division to fight all sorts of scams on the Internet, or monitor the movement of people suspected to be terrorists or involved in drugs and other syndicates, instead of shifting the focus on policing people’s posting on the Internet.

In one of my previous articles , I had asked if the boys in blue were too busy stopping frail-looking foreigners by the roadsides, how they will patrol the neighbourhood with greater vigilance or going after the real criminals?

Ordinary citizens like me want a country which is crime-free and safe to live in, instead of fearing when we will be robbed or pickpocketed in busy places. If Khalid is honest about it, even the police know their police beat needs an iron grill door.

Let immature people mature

As the top cop in this country, Khalid should not have labelled fellow Malaysians as being “immature citizens”; he knows better that there will always be young people who will continue to post all sorts of remarks, especially anonymously, on the social media.

Every day, millions of postings are made on various social media and if one cared to monitor the Internet, the task would be too humongous for the police. It would also drain away a lot of the police’s already limited manpower resources.

Khalid may think that some of these postings are a real threat to the country’s security. To date, this has not caused any major public disorder or religious unrest, knowing that Malaysians will just talk, but when it comes to picking themselves up to go under the sun, they will just shy away.

Instead, what we have seen are a few incidents which were in fact played up by politicians themselves. These are people who should be hauled up for questioning, not someone like me or members of the Group of 25 (G25).

Over my article, which was written out of the sincerity of my heart to see the police force being turned into a formidable force with a high degree of integrity, I am told that a police report has been lodged against me.

I will now have to spend a few hours with the police interrogator myself next week; but gratefully, over a couple of phone conversations, I can tell that the gentleman who will be taking my statement is polite, and I would be happy to cooperate, and keep you in the loop after Tuesday. After all, the police should be polite to civilians.

Along with me, I am told that several members of the Group of 25 eminent Malay civil servants have also been questioned by police over a public forum that was held in December last year. Why the need to question them? Think once, think twice, at their age, are they capable of being a national threat after having served the country nearly all their lifespan?

Whatever I wrote in my articles is public knowledge or already in the public domain. Although slightly dramatised and circumstances changed, the public have heard or even personally encountered such stories over and over again.

One reason why some of my articles have hit the so-called ‘jackpot’ occasionally is because it reflected very much the people’s sentiments, and what they could not articulate in words, as a writer and a critical thinker, I have immortalised their thoughts and opinions with the hope that people in the corridors of power would listen.

In short, my articles resonate with their personal sentiments because they are written out of a heart full of sincerity.

This is my job as ‘salt’ to society to help stop the rot, right the wrongs, and to stimulate more people to start doing some critical thinking, instead of being spoon-fed and being so gullible as to take everything literally. I am helping Malaysians to mature as a society; meanwhile, Khalid should place his focus on the real threats that we all hope would not happen to this nation.

Yes, we frowned at DAP’s Teresa Kok being charged with sedition over her Chinese New Year satire last year, but we would give a standing ovation to the boys in blue if they apprehended a suicide bomber or managed to foil a suicide bombing attempt before it happened.

A real terrorist threat is a big contrast to Parti Amanah Negara president Mohamad Sabu making a comment about Bukit Kepong, an incident in our past history, which has no bearing on national security.

To fight terrorists is not a task for the weaklings, and we expect to see in our police force, men and women of integrity who are bold and courageous to stand up for the truth, and to defend the country when they are called upon.

STEPHEN NG is an ordinary citizen with an avid interest in following political developments in the country since 2008.