IPOH: Anyone visiting the State Secretariat Building here when the State Legislative Assembly is in session can easily get the impression that he has accidentally wandered into a police state, according to former menteri besar Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin.
“We are forced to go through only one door, where we are checked with metal detectors and the police will seize all our personal gadgets, like laptops, video cameras and mobile phones, to prevent us from recording the proceedings,” he told FMT.
“Democracy is dead in Perak. The illegitimate BN government is using the police to stay in power.
“We are forced into an atmosphere of fear by the presence of uniformed and plainclothes police stationed outside and inside the hall at every sitting.”
Nizar is the state assemblyman for Pasir Panjang as well as MP for Bukit Gantang. He is also deputy chief of Perak PAS and heads the Pakatan Rakyat alliance in the state.
He also criticised the way the BN government conducts the legislative sessions.
He said the assembly had turned into nothing more than a rubber stamping office, strengthening the impression that Perak had turned fascist.
Most of the questions that opposition assemblymen posed during the previous sitting remained unanswered, he said.
“Every sitting is a rush job of a few days, and democratic debating is virtually disallowed. Our microphones are turned off when we raise questions.”
He also alleged that only selected pro-government media representatives were allowed into the second floor of the state assembly hall, where the debates take place.
“Others are caged in a sort of fish tank on the third floor to prevent them from following the assembly proceedings live.”
Barisan Nasional (BN) wrestled the Pakatan-led state government in 2009 following the defection of three Pakatan elected representatives. - FMT
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.