TRIM AFTER LOSING 10KG
NO EXCUSE: Police personnel must pass fitness tests in 2018, says Khalid
STARTING 2018, Federal police will ensure that policemen pass their fitness tests before they are confirmed in their posts or promoted.
This will see police personnel having to undergo the Physical Ability Requirement Evaluation (PARE), a test adopted by the United Nations and several police forces in the world, including the much-vaunted Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said the decision was made with the objective of ensuring that all policemen were fit.
Speaking after the closing ceremony of the Trim and Fit 2016 programme at the police training centre here yesterday, he said the physical tests should motivate policemen to maintain their ideal body mass index, as specified by the Health Ministry.
“The reason why we do this is not to torture or deny anyone their rights, but to make sure that our staff maintain healthy lifestyles.
Khalid, who himself lost 10kg, said if he could do it, there was no excuse for other members of the police force not to participate in the fitness programme.
“As members of a law enforcement agency, especially those at the frontline, policemen must maintain their fitness, not only for their own good, but also to increase the public’s
confidence in our ability to carry out our duties and maintain the force’s image,” he said.
The fitness programme was a pilot project by federal police headquarters in Bukit Aman in cooperation with Universiti Teknologi Mara’s Sports and Recreation Sciences Faculty.
It involved 35 participants from
different departments of the force.
During the six-month programme, 26 participants lost between 1kg and 21kg, while the rest had to pull out due to job transfers and unavoidable circumstances.
He said the programme’s success had prompted federal police to implement it among all police personnel in future.