Sarawak Report reported that IGP Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun (pic) had taken at least 16 high ranking officers to Istanbul for a work trip, estimating that RM312,441 could have been spent on just business class flights and hotels for the group. — Picture by Ahmad Zamzahuri

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 12 — DAP’s Lim Lip Eng today urged Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun to clear the air over his alleged luxurious work trip to Istanbul, Turkey.

Sarawak Report (SR) on February 10 reported that the top cop had taken at least 16 high ranking officers to Istanbul for a work trip and the online news portal estimated that RM312,441 could have been spent on just business class flights and hotels for the group.

Lim said with the trip presumably paid for by taxpayers, he urged Bukit Aman to come clean and clear the air.

“The federal police cannot continue to play mute to this news of public interest. Imagine what sort of brickbats would have hit our Cabinet ministers if one of them brings 16 staff for such tour, especially when our national debt is massive.

“Fuzi must explain if there was any abuse of power, especially since he himself is slated to retire in May and there is no benefit for him to go on the study tour to combat gambling,” Lim said in a statement today.

The working visit by the elite team was apparently to study methods of tackling the gambling problem in the country.

“With the country’s coffers already being plundered by the former regime, we cannot afford to have our IGP bringing his troupe on a spending spree especially when they could just “walk across” the causeway to Singapore, which boasts of having the world’s second-lowest crime rate after Japan.

“Efforts must be made to study the methods used by Singapore to combat all vices, not just gambling. Singapore’s crime rate is so low that many of its shops do not even have to be locked up like in Malaysia,” he said.

Lim also questioned why couldn’t Mohamad Fuzi instead of going to Turkey, bring two or three of his trusted aides to the country where fugitive financier Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, who is a wanted man in the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) saga is believed to be hiding.

Lim also questioned why Mohamad Fuzi could not bring two or three of his trusted aides to the country where fugitive financier Low Taek Jho is believed to be hiding, instead of going to Turkey.

Low, better known as Jho Low, is a wanted man in the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) saga.

In its article, SR said that there was no announcement as to whether there is some kind of official business, conference, function or training session of any kind to be attended to,

Officials told SR that it is highly unusual for operational reasons that three or four senior officers to travel abroad to attend the same function together.