Community Policing System extended to 6 more NPCs

SINGAPORE: The Singapore Police Force will implement its Community Policing System (COPS) at six more Neighbourhood Police Centres (NPC) across the island.

Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office S Iswaran made the announcement at a community event on Sunday.

The six NPCs are at Bishan, Punggol, Sengkang, Woodlands East, Woodlands West and Clementi.

By the end of this year, police cameras will be deployed in another 700 HDB blocks and multi—storey carparks.

Officers also conduct daily foot and bicycle patrols.

Sergeant Nurulhuda Zaibarudin said: "We can go to the places which not all vehicle patrols can go to. So, that’s when the residents can see us, and we can make our presence felt, and they feel that ’oh, there’s a police officer patrolling around the neighbourhood’."

Mr Iswaran, who is also the Second Minister for Home Affairs, said this is part of the second phase of the COPS rollout.

The COPS system was introduced in May last year in Tampines and Bukit Merah East.

It is a nationwide transformation of front—line policing strategies which aims to improve the way in which the current NPCs work with the community.

Under COPS, NPCs will be strengthened with additional resources for tackling local crime concerns and enhancing community engagement.

Over the next three years, the Police will progressively implement COPS across all 35 NPCs in Singapore.

Mr Iswaran said the police’s experience with the rollout of COPS during the first phase has been positive.

"This enhanced crime—solving capability was demonstrated through a case at Tampines NPC, where the Crime Strike Force was able to track down and arrest three bicycle thieves in September 2012," said Mr Iswaran.

"This was achieved through the Crime Strike Force’s strong ground intelligence and targeted patrols in the vicinity of the crime, together with valuable footage from Police cameras. It illustrates how NPCs will be better equipped to fight local crime under the COPS model."

Residents have been pleased with the increased police presence.

Many have also come forward to take a more active role in partnering the police, for example through joint patrols.

The West Coast Protectors was also launched on Sunday.

It is a new Residents’ Watch Group jointly formed by the Clementi NPC and the Clementi constituency.

So far some 300 volunteers have signed up to be Protectors.

Mohd Shah Abdullah, who signed up as a Protector, said: "(In) our community, everybody must help each other, because when you call the police, they cannot arrive within one minute. They will take some time, 15 minutes, 20 minutes. We want our residents to help each other, and look after each other."

Almost four out of ten arrests for major crime cases last year were made with the assistance of the public.

— CNA/fa/xq