- Joined
- Jan 18, 2010
- Messages
- 7,177
- Points
- 48
One is a busybody and the other kenna bullied when young.
Bullied as a child, he grew up with a strong sense of justice. There could be other victims like him, he thought, and he vowed to become a policeman to help those who couldn't help themselves.
Now the commander of Tanglin Police Division, he is driven to nab criminals and has identified areas where he and his officers can make a difference.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner of Police (DAC) Lu Yeow Lim took command of Tanglin about two weeks ago from Assistant Commissioner of Police Koh Yak Leng.
Explaining further why he chose to become a police officer, he said: "At least for some of us, it's this sense of justice. We are angry because somebody has been victimised.
"You feel the need to right the wrong. And it goes beyond passion. It is anger. You really want to get the perpetrator and bring him to justice."
And sometimes, police officers get hurt in the process.Ten years ago, while making an arrest, he was hit by chairs and suffered a bruise on his head.
Under Tanglin
DAC Lu's division covers residential areas from Bishan to Bukit Timah, the shopping belt of Orchard Road, embassies and consulates in the Tanglin area and more than 500 entertainment outlets.
That means his officers have to deal with issues like theft in the shopping belt, thwarting potential terrorist attacks on the embassies and dealing with drunks at Clarke Quay.
Clarke Quay is an area of concern for him as there have been more cases of drunks molesting women and getting into fights.
DAC Lu said: "As Clarke Quay becomes more and more attractive, you see more and more people going in. We are seeing more cases of alcohol-induced cases, be it outraging of modesty or fights."
"A drunk is arrested every other day. And in about 20 per cent of these cases, a police officer is assaulted."
Said DAC Lu: "20 per cent is not a small number because if you arrest 100 people, you get whacked 20 times."
Commanding officer of Orchard Neighbourhood Police Centre, Superintendent Lee Kok Pin, said police officers get assaulted once every two weeks.
He said: "The guys punch our officers while the ladies bite. Because they are drunk, sometimes they become disorderly."
DAC Lu said the offenders often can't remember hitting anyone when they're charged in court.
He recalled a case when a taxi driver didn't want to be accused of stealing a sleeping drunk's belongings, so he drove the passenger to the nearest police station.
When police officers tried to wake the man, he attacked them.
Said DAC Lu: "For some reason, when people are drunk, they get really angry when you wake them up."
He said the police engage operators of entertainment outlets to ensure they sell alcohol responsibly and step in early to prevent conflict among customers.
Tackling terrorism
When it comes to countering terrorism, there's absolutely no room for any mistakes, he said.
"They (terrorists) just have to be lucky once. We have to get lucky all the time." As for shoplifting at Orchard Road, he said groups of foreigners have come to Singapore just to steal luxury goods from high-end boutiques.
This is especially so during the Great Singapore Sale when human traffic is high. This reduces their risk of being caught.
They catch two such professional syndicates a year.
"They actually have a shopping list. So they come in prepared," said Supt Lee.
Last year, they arrested a group of nine Vietnamese who stole expensive clothing, bags and wallets from the Orchard Road area.
DAC Lu said they would fan out to steal, then meet an accomplicewho would wait at an agreed place with a big suitcase to store the loot.
Said DAC Lu: "The guy is like the storeroom."
While the overall crime rate in Tanglin has dropped in the last two years, DAC Lu said: "One crime is one too many."
[email protected]
As the five-year-old boy took the lift with his mother, the man next to them pressed every button right up to the 25th storey.
The boy was miffed.
How could anyone be so annoying?
He felt he had to do the right thing and slapped the man on the wrist.
That was 35 years ago. Today, that boy is the commander of Central Police Division.
Besides people who make a nuisance of themselves in public, Deputy Assistant Commissioner of Police Daniel Tan, 40, also has to deal with hardcore criminals, protecting our tourist spots and ensuring that major events are conducted safely.
Mr Tan took over command of the division last week from Assistant Commissioner of Police Tan Hung Hooi, 43.
He confessed that it is in his nature to make sure that things are done the right way. Recalling the lift incident, Mr Tan said: "My mother was so worried that the man would turn around and hit me. But he didn't."
As Mr Tan grew older, he did not really know what he wanted to do in life, until he completed junior college.
He said: "I decided to pursue law in university, and the police scholarship opportunity presented itself."
Today, as commander of Central Police Division, MrTan has about 1,000 people in his team to help him "set things right".
His division covers an area of 27 sq km.
Small area
Although the area is small, it has a large transient population, with areas like Chinatown, Little
India and the financial district under its care.
Also known as A Division, the Central Police Division looks after iconic structures like the Singapore Flyer, Marina Bay Sands, Suntec City, Fullerton Hotel, City Hall, the Supreme Court, the Subordinate Courts and Parliament House.
The area has the largest number of entertainment outlets - 700 - within its jurisdiction.
Mr Tan said: "Recently, we caught a hostess removing her top inside an entertainment outlet and the outlet's licence was suspended."
There is also a high concentration of massage parlours in the area and this poses opportunities for vice activities, he added.
There are more than 100 closed-circuit television cameras installed in the area, a necessity as international events like the Formula One races are held there regularly.
These new events and buildings have completely changed the landscape there and pose many challenges to police officers in the area.
Said Mr Tan: "Ten years ago, there was only Suntec City and we had only about 100,000 people turning up at the New Year's Eve countdown party.
"Last year, at the Marina Bay New Year's Eve Countdown Party, about 400,000 people turned up. We had to deal with the dispersal and crowd management in the area during major events like this."
So how do they deal with half a million people leaving the Marina Bay area at the same time?
Mr Tan and his team need to work closely with the event organisers to come up with different dispersal routes.
With safety and crowd control being his main concern and the possibility of a terrorist attack always at the back of his mind, Mr Tan maintained that there is no place for complacency in his division.
"Like the National Day Parade, we have it every year. But we need to treat each year's parade as unique and always look at the details," said Mr Tan, who spent three hours walking around the Marina Bay area on Wednesday.
"If I see a structure in the middle of a route identified for crowd dispersal, I would get my operations planning officers to ensure these are removed. Otherwise, we will come up with another plan."
At popular tourist attractions like Little India and Chinatown, where there is a high concentration of elderly residents, snatch thefts and conman schemes pose another set of challenges to the division, said Mr Tan.
Watch group
The Silver Watch Group was launched to keep the elderly safe from crimes.
Police officers and volunteers visit the homes of elderly residents, many of whom live alone and are prime targets of crime. The officers check the padlocks of the homes of these elderly and educate them on safety measures like what they should do when approached by strangers.
For the recently developed Marina area, MrTan and his team have been holding meetings fortnightly with personnel from the Marina Bay Sands integrated resort to discuss safety issues in the area.
[email protected]
Last edited:
