Lo Khere Chiang : A horn to alert neighbours to crime

Lo Khere Chiang MPP chairman (right) holding a vuvuzela horn, with policemen and actors (as bad hats) seen during the simulation of a theft at the community crime prevention drill.

This is such a great idea. A horn to alert neighbours to crime !

KUCHING: Community policing has reached a high note, with the adoption of an ‘alert signal’ during a full crime prevention drill carried out yesterday afternoon at Jalan Arang and Everbright Estate neighbourhood area, where neighbours literally sound the alarm in chain reaction when a crime is in progress.

The exercise, crafted to create greater public awareness on crime prevention, was said to be the first ever community driven Crime Prevention Drill, was held there with the purpose to find a common understanding among the neighbours on how to respond or to react when a crime occurs in the neighbourhood, explained PKR Women vice chairman Voon Shiak Ni.

The drill was successfully held with full support of the police force from Padawan and about 10 houses at Lrg 15 Jalan Arang participating in the exercise where a crime was simulated to gauge the effectiveness of the ‘neighbourhood crime alert’.

“The leaders and coordinators of the crime prevention drill planned the drill with the purpose to introduce a way or practice to send alerts via an identified sound which signifies danger as a common perception for the neighbourhood,” she said.

The community is urged to adopt the use of a standard ‘alert signal’ by trumpeting the vuvuzela (an African horn popularised by sport fans) and also by hitting an empty tin to raise a recognisable din.

“This afternoon, the drill staged a scene whereby a burglar on a motorbike with an accomplice was spotted climbing the fence of one of the houses and upon sighting the thief, the house owner started trumpeting the vuvuzela and the alert was supposedly to be picked up by other neighbours who also follow suit to trumpet the vuvuzela or hitting an empty tin,” she said.

“The drill ended with a successful arrest of the two burglars by police,” Voon added.

The participants of the drill included all the leaders from Jln Arang Neigbourhood Watch and Everbright Estate Neighbourhood Watch, namely Datu William Lee, Dr Kho Boon Chong, Christopher Lee, Gabriel Lai, CM Ong, Jeffery Mok and also MPP chairman Lo khere Chiang.

Borneo Post: November 30, 2015