Low wages among police personnel have contributed to their involvement in corruption or other illegal means to earn extra income, a PKR lawmaker said today.

Kuala Langat MP Abdullah Sani Abdul Hamid in a statement quoted Bukit Aman Integrity Department director Abdul Rahim Hanafi, who recently revealed that many police personnel were taking home less than 40 percent of their gross pay.

It was also reported that more than 10,000 police personnel aged between 30 and 35, as well as between 50 and 55, were caught in a serious debt cycle.

"I highly sympathise with their situation and, for me, this 10,000 number is too high, whereby this low wage factor will cause the individual to cheat or find other extra income.

"In fact, the low salaries of police personnel have been the main contributor to their involvement in corruption and other such activities," said Abdullah Sani who also heads PKR's labour bureau.

He pointed out that a person earning RM4,000 would still find it difficult to survive in Kuala Lumpur what more a police officer earning RM2,000 and below.

In the past, he said there were also cases of police officers being involved in demanding money from drug syndicates, illegal gambling dens, massage parlours and other such outlets as a way to boost their income.

"Such cases will have a negative impact particularly as the police are responsible for protecting the people's safety and the people have placed their full trust in the police forced," he added.

Abdullah Sani urged the government to review salaries of police personnel and other enforcement authorities in the country in line with a similar suggestion made by the MACC recently.