Fund-raising drive complicated our efforts, says IGP
Published on: Saturday, June 18, 2016
Khalid said a political party's fundraising campaign complicated efforts to secure the release of the four.He said the party's open announcement about its collection during the Sarawak state elections emboldened the militants to make stronger demands, since the group knew how much money the campaign had raised."This political party went and announced how much they have collected. Of course this made the other side excited," Khalid told reporters.
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"What they did only complicated our efforts...it gave them stronger demand power," he added, without naming the political party.The families of the four had appeared at the campaign rallies of SUPP, DAP and State Reform Party (Star) election candidates, kneeling on the stage and pleading for public donations.Star's Bukit Assek candidate Moh Hiong King reportedly raised RM1,930.50, while DAP reportedly said all proceeds raised that evening would be donated and SUPP candidate Chieng Buong Toon reportedly said the Barisan Nasional (BN) component party's Bukit Assek division would donate RM10,000.Khalid said he had previously cautioned that any open discussions about the kidnappings could hamper efforts to secure their release.
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"That is why when I said don't talk about how much money was raised because they would take advantage of it.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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The IGP also said that while he was not certain if the police could have negotiated the four men's freedom without the ransom money, he stressed that they have the experience to deal with such situations. "We have done this before," he said.
