PDRM Police Officers Required To Wear Bodycam From Oct 2024

More accountability and transparency for law enforcement in Malaysia has been demanded by the general public in recent times. This is a result of multiple high-profile and widespread criminal cases involving Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) personnel.

Among these are requests from Malaysians for body cameras to be worn by police officers in order to discourage abuses of authority, corruption, and even police brutality. For the record, the Home Ministry has been working on the implementation of body worn cameras (BWC) for law enforcement officers for a very long time. It appears that the initiative is almost ready for implementation.

According to Comm Datuk Wan Hassan Wan Ahmad, the police force will receive 7,648 body-worn cameras (BWCs) in phases beginning in September. The Home Ministry sent a letter of acceptance on Tuesday regarding the provision of BWCs to the police force, said the director of the Bukit Aman Crime Prevention and Community Safety Department.

The BWC will primarily be utilized by staff members in the department's motorcycle patrol unit (URB) and mobile patrol vehicle (MPV).

“It will also be supplied to the Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department,” he told The Star.

“They will be placed at 157 district police headquarters and 640 police stations nationwide.The use of BWCs will also be conducted in stages starting in October”

He said training for MPV and URB personnel will also be conducted next year from March to December.

“The use of BWCs will have a positive impact on preventing acts of wrongdoing and issues related to integrity among police personnel and officers.

“The cameras are capable of recording the action of police officers in the field, including acts of wrongdoing.

“Each BWC user will be equipped with an ID while on duty.

“It does not have a delete recording function and it will be able to record video and audio for up to eight hours,” he added.

Photo: PDRM

Additionally, Wan Hassan emphasized that before the BWCs are issued to all officers across the country, the standard operating procedure (SOP) for their use is still being finalized.
To make sure that the BWC usage instructions are followed to the letter, the SOP is crucial. By employing the BWC, the police force will advance as the only law enforcement organization utilizing cutting-edge technology in keeping with contemporary policing practices.