JUDGING by the event described in your report “Trigger-happy woman and
boyfriend killed in shoot-out” (NST, Nov 6), we can conclude that many criminals love to hide out in flats, apartments and condominiums in order to avoid detection by neighbours and the authorities.

High-rise accommodation is always a preferred location for illegal activities.

The public needs to be proactive in crime-prevention efforts, such as providing timely and reliable information to the police.

In Muar, under the jurisdiction of Kawasan Rukun Tetangga Jalan Bakri, we have implemented successfully the concept of community policing.

While the “horizontal policing” in Taman Sri Maharani is a local success story, the “ver - tical policing” adopted by the Pangsapuri Intan apartments is now gaining momentum, too. It has been proven that active participation of residents is important to the success of the concept.

Community policing is about smart strategies, simple and yet effective in fighting crime. It advocates proactive action before the crime happens. Community policing is about smart partnership between the public and the local police force. Best of all, community policing can be adopted by anybody, anywhere and anytime.

In formulating community policing strategies, Pangsapuri Intan has formed a residents’ association. They adopted the caring approach; engaging children, women and the elderly to fight crime.

Members of the residents’ association are tasked with taking care of a certain number of households, to get to know them and their immediate families intimately.

Within a period of two years, the association had got connected with all 150 househ o l d s.

They improved the security systems, retrained in-house security guards, introduced new regulations pertaining to security measures and organised many social activities for the residents to promote n e i g h b o u r l i n e s s.

Strong networking built on solid and mutual understanding with the police force has helped to flush out troublemakers.

Today, they are many steps ahead of the others.

Pangsapuri Intan’s example has proven that every Malaysian has a role to play. For those who always complain and criticise about the local crime rate, my advice is: save your breath and start community policing in your area.

Turn words into action. Let’s help the police to help you.