I read with interest the Police Commissioner's efforts to explain why crime in the SAR is rising and detection rates are the lowest in 10 years ('Crime rise linked to economic hardship', South China Morning Post, January 7).
While I have no doubt the rise in crime is due to the worsening economic climate, I think the falling detection rates should be seen as a direct result of the Government's misguided attempts to save money.
About two years ago a new system for paid overtime was introduced in the then Royal Hong Kong Police. This system was so complicated, with so many conditions, that for most officers it meant no paid overtime at all. At the same time police stations cut back on the number of detectives on each shift, increasing the workload for each officer. In effect detectives are now working longer hours for less pay.
Officers are told to take overtime off as holiday. However, staff shortages seldom allow policemen to take time off, as they do not want to burden their colleagues with extra work. Thus officers are owed thousands of holiday hours which they will never take, saving the Government a lot of money.
The police, like most of us, work for money, not idealism. With their increased workload and drop in income, it is understandable that they put low-priority crime like burglary on the back-burner.
If the Government wants to see an increase in crime detection rates, it should give officers an incentive to put in the extra hours it will take to deal with the increased crime rates, not ask them to do more for less. This is another example of the Government taking the shortest route to saving money, and society must suffer.
