KUALA LUMPUR, July 6 — The police must stick to the letter of the law and not give Bersih a permit to hold a rally, even if held in a stadium, Perkasa president Datuk Ibrahim Ali has said.
He said Bersih does not fulfil the criteria for permit approval according to the Police Act because it has been declared an illegal organisation by Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishamuddin Hussein.
He said under Section 27 of the Act, a permit cannot be given to illegal organisations or individuals representing such groups and warned that the police would set a “very bad precedent” if they issued Bersih a permit for its rally this weekend.
He said the police must also be satisfied there would be no threat to public order if the permit is issued, and pointed to the recent discovery of weapons stashed around Sogo as a cause for concern.
“A stadium may be closed but all sorts of things can happen going in or going out,” he told reporters at Kelab Sultan Sulaiman here today.
“Can they (Bersih) guarantee there won’t be a procession? Can they guarantee that there will be no disturbances?”
He also issued a hands-off warning to the prime minister not to direct the police to issue a permit for Bersih as the decision should only be made by the those most familiar with security matters.
“Police know the best about security, not the prime minister. The prime minister has to listen to advice from the police, not the other way around,” he said.
“No political decision in security matters … there should be no compromise for the political interests of any political party, including the ruling party.”
Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar today reminded Bersih 2.0 to apply for a permit for this Saturday’s rally, warning that failure to do so would still make the event an illegal gathering.
He said Bersih had yet to inform or notify the police of their plans for the rally but gave assurance that the group’s permit application process would be expedited in view of the urgency of the situation.
Khalid further warned that those found wearing Bersih T-shirts or possessing pro-Bersih materials would still be arrested by police as the organisation was still considered illegal
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