Multiple holes in IPCMC bill

COMMENT | There are many holes in the Independent Police Complaints of Misconduct Commission Bill 2019 which deals with police misconduct and which was tabled for first reading during the last session of Parliament and will be debated in the forthcoming session of Parliament later this year.

Even the name has undergone a subtle but very profound change from the original envisaged by the Dzaiddin Royal Commission of 2005 which was the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC). The word “and” has been substituted with “of”.

This means the new commission deals with “complaints of misconduct” instead of “complaints and misconduct” which is a much wider interpretation of the scope of the IPCMC. This looks like a deliberate attempt to ...