A piece of paper called SURAT PENGHARGAAN

12th November 2008 was a meaningful day for all the residents of Taman Sri Maharani in Muar because being the secretary of the Residents Association, I was awarded a "SURAT PENGHARGAAN" by the nation's top cop, the Inspector General of Police, Tan Sri Musa Hassan.


I accepted the "letter of appreciation" from Ketua Polis Johor, Datuk Mohd. Mokhtar bin Hj.Mohd Shariff at a ceremony at Ibu Pejabat Polis Kontigen (IPK) Johor.

It was presented in recongnition to our team effort in making Cp a success in TSM and the surrounding neighborhoods. ( Tahniah to ALL TSM residents,the honor goes to YOU,yes ...that'sYOU !)

From 2006 to 2008,the other recipients of "SURAT PENGHARGAAN" within KRT Jalan Bakri are:

1. Ghafar bin Ibrahim,KRT Jalan Bakri (by OCPD Muar)
2. Lee Kuan Hwee ,China Press Muar (by OCPD Muar)
3. Tam Yong Yuee,TSM (by OCPD Muar)
   
4. Koon Chew Fatt,TSM (by OCPD Muar)
   
5. Persatuan Penduduk TSM (by Ketua Polis Johor 2007)
6. Persatuan Penduduk TSM (by Ketua Polis Johor 2008)
7. Chua Teck Boon ,TSM (by OCPD Muar & IGP)
8. Soka Gakkai Malaysia,Muar branch (by OCPD Muar)

Not An Ordinary Piece of Paper

The highest award from PDRM for the members of the public is a humble piece of paper named "SURAT PENGHARGAAN".

It sounded humble but for every piece of surat penghargaan awarded,it tells an extra-ordinary story about the recipient or the organisation.

Over the years, they were awarded to peace- loving citizens, organisations and police officers who contributed to local peace and security, for those who promote neighborliness and racial unity within our society.


Surat Penghargaan Vs. State Awards
Surat Penghargaan is so....... special because:

• Always genuine
• The intention is always clear
  
• Something money can not buy
• No because of who you know
  
• Never a barter trade tool
  
• No nomination process to follow
• Number of recipients are only to a "limited few"

State Awards are ......the opposite of ALL the above.(you do not need to be a rocket scientist to figure out, right...?)


SGM Kompang welcoming Johor Chief Police Officer at a Cp launching ceremony in Muar recently

Soka Gakkai Malaysia (Muar) was awarded a surat penghargaan by OCPD Muar recently for promoting racial harmony and unity through cultural arts.

Their famous Kompang group consists of 20 members,all chinese, had been performing for many major events around the country.

They were also invited to perform for 2008 National Day celebrations in Dataran Tanjung Emas Muar.

On 1st August 2008, SGM's youth performed traditional dances of Malay,Indian and Chinese at the Cp event in TSM attended by Johor top Cop.

Mr.Tam Yong Yuee of TSM, a retired teacher and a peace-loving Malaysian, is a regular contributor to New Straits Times. He is a living proof of "the pen is mightier than the sword". In Cp, Mr.Tam's pen is more powerful than all the guns!

Mr. Tam Yong Yuee, a recipient of "SURAT PENGHARGAAN" in 2008, is a regular writer to New Straits Time's (NST) letters column.

He often expresses his views in a fair,honest yet critical manner,touching on issues affecting the daily lives of Malaysians.

He had in many occasions expressed his personal opinions about the benefits of teamwork along with PDRM and suggested ways to further enchance this partnership in the concpet of Cp. ( For Tam Yong Yuee's many interesting articles,try to log on any search engines, just type in his full name T AM YONG YUEE! )


The Man who did a better job than our first Angkawasan! Mr.Lee Kuan Hwee,the newspaper bureau chief who contributed beyond the call of duty, accepting his Surat Penghargaan from OCPD Muar,ACP Nasir Bin Ramli . His papers, had donated newspapers columns worth a market value of above RM 250,000 for Cp since year 2007.

Mr.Lee Kuan Hwee, a local Chinese paper bureau chief, accepted his SURAT PENGHARGAAN on behalf of China Press in March 2008.

Knowing that the media could play a role in sending the correct messages to the readers, Lee has done what many failed to do.

He fought extra hard to ensure enough coverage were given to anti-crime campaigns by IPD Muar.

All together,he and his team had allocated at least 34 full pages(with color prints too) of news coverage for anti-crime campaigns and Cp with Muar police force.

In conclusion, what Lee did on the ground is far better & significant than what our nation's First Angkasawan had done on the space ! ( If you invite Lee to speak at public lectures, I guarantee you my dear fellow Malaysians,that he does not charge a fee either !!)


The Spill over effects

A "SURAT PENGHARGAAN" is to:

1. Recognise the contributions of an invidual or organisation for assisting the police in fighting crime and maintaining law and order
2. Encourage more peace-loving citizens to come forward and play a part in crime prevention
3. Motivate the recipients to keep up the good work and improve from there

Young children at TSM are all good friends to local Cp cops

A pat on The Shoulder

While police do not advertise on papers about their achievements, Malaysians in general are stingy in giving due recognition for a job well done by the men in blue.

The next time, when you encounter a friendly or helpful policeman, you should:

1. Take down his identification number on his uniform, write a "surat pujian" and send to the nearest OCPD, cc. to the state Police chief
2. Congratulate him or her on the spot for the job well done
3. Encourage him or her to keep up the good work

Therefore, let's be generous to our men in blue.

Follow your heart and give our policemen due recognition when it is due.

Despite a few bad apples, majority of our policemen are all good cops, true to the new motto of T.A.B = Tegas, Adil, Berkhemah