PUTRAJAYA, Oct 14 — Road Transport Department (JPJ) officers will use body-worn cameras (body cams) from November for more effective enforcement and to enhance public service integrity and transparency.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said that for the first phase, 100 body cams would be used by JPJ officers, with an allocation of RM2.3 million.
“This initiative has been discussed for years, and finally, we have the budget. For the second phase, all JPJ enforcement personnel will wear it when they are out conducting enforcement activities,” he told a media conference after the JPJ assembly and anti-graft pledge ceremony here today.
He said the use of body cams signifies JPJ’s commitment to implement evidence-based enforcement and ensure every move on the field is recorded, evaluated and monitored objectively.
“JPJ personnel who will be involved in special operations, especially on issues related to overloading, must wear this camera as they face great risk.
“Some among them (are also) given pistols because, usually, when we carry out enforcement, there are ‘tontos’ (informants) who are not afraid of JPJ personnel. Some (tontos) even challenge us as they want to scare our personnel,” he said, adding that the body cams and guns are issued for officers’ self-defence.
He added that the JPJ is confident that the initiative will become a catalyst for the transformation of enforcement work culture, increase public confidence in the transparency of JPJ actions and strengthen the effectiveness of the public service governance and accountability system.
“This measure also emphasises JPJ’s stance to carry out enforcement duties firmly, professionally and with high integrity.
“It is in line with the Madani Government’s aspirations to strengthen governance and the public’s trust in the country’s enforcement agencies,” he said.
At the event, JPJ received four new Honda CR-V vehicles from PLUS Malaysia Bhd, as a continuation of their strategic collaboration forged in 2019.
