Police deny discipline issue despite bicycle patrol pics
The deputy police commissioner has rejected suggestions of a disciplinary problem in the force despite the publication of an incident involving two uniformed officers apparently horsing around while taking photographs of each other during a bicycle patrol at Tolo Harbour in Tai Po.
The incident came to light a week after 27 senior marine police officers - most of them on duty - were accused of misusing a police launch that took them to Po Toi Island for a two-hour seafood feast.
The police force has ordered a formal investigation into both incidents.
The bicycle patrol featured in the Chinese-language press yesterday after 37 pictures appeared on the internet showing two constables, one male and one female, taken against the scenic background of Tolo Harbour in which one or both held different poses.
The male officer had uploaded the pictures to his Facebook social-networking site by the weekend and the album stated that they were taken last Saturday.
It is understood the two constables are in their 20s and were recruited to the force in 2007.
A police spokesman confirmed that the two officers were from a Tai Po division patrol sub-unit and had been on duty on a bicycle trail when they took the pictures.
Deputy Commissioner Peter Yam Tat-wing said yesterday that rigid guidelines governed officers' conduct and the force took discipline issues seriously.
He said the two constables had not been suspended from duty but disciplinary action could be taken if any misconduct were proved by an internal police investigation.
'We set a very high standard on officers' conduct,' Yam said. 'When officers are on duty, we expect them to do something related to their assigned jobs.'
When asked whether he thought there was a loophole in the monitoring of officers' behaviour, which had resulted in scandals, Yam said: 'I disagree. We will impose severe punishment for misconduct.'
The police code does not specifically prohibit officers from taking pictures while on duty, but states clearly that their behaviour should not harm the force's reputation.
James To Kun-sun, vice-chairman of the Legislative Council security panel, said the photo-taking incident reflected a lack of understanding by young officers about the effects of their behaviour in public.
But he said the incident was far less serious than the one involving officers travelling on a police vessel to the seafood feast.
'All these young frontline officers need to be reminded of their identity and how they should behave when wearing uniforms,' he said. 'But the public expects senior marine officers to set an example to juniors.'
The officers who attended the feast, which was also a farewell party, were all above inspector rank, with at least one senior superintendent and four superintendents.
They were served seafood including lobsters and wine at a restaurant on the island during the two-hour lunch.
The case is being investigated by New Territories South police headquarters.
