Emergency powers bid shows incompetence, says Anwar

 

Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim says the PN government is using the Covid-19 crisis to justify its abuse of power.

PETALING JAYA: Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim has accused the Perikatan Nasional federal government of incompetence, which he said was revealed by its widely-speculated move for emergency powers to deal with the Covid-19 crisis.

Anwar said that while the rest of Asia is looking for ways to manage the pandemic and reopen their economies safely, Malaysia is heading in the opposite direction.

“A state of emergency is declared when there is a threat to our national security. But when the government is itself the source of that threat, then a state of emergency is nothing more than the descent into dictatorship and authoritarianism,” said Anwar.

Anwar said he strongly advised Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin “to consider the legacy of these actions he is taking out of self-interest and selfishness”.

Muhyiddin is currently at Istana Abdulaziz in Pahang for an audience with the King believed to be regarding the use of special emergency powers because of the recent surge in the number of Covid-19 cases to between 700 and 800 new cases daily for the past week.

The prime minister had chaired a special emergency meeting of the Cabinet earlier today before leaving for Kuantan.

A declaration of a state of emergency would allow Muhyiddin to avoid any no-confidence motion in the Dewan Rakyat. He would also be able to avoid tabling the 2021 Budget; if MPs vote against the Budget, the government would automatically fall.

Anwar accused the PN government, which he termed “illegitimate”, of knowing it would fail to demonstrate majority support in Parliament. He said PN is using the Covid-19 crisis as an excuse to justify its abuse of power.

“We have yet to see a solid strategy to handle the crisis, and on the back of growing criticism, the government thinks a receding democratic power is the best strategy,” he said.

“In fact, to overcome Covid-19 what we need is transparency, accountability and firm action by the various ministries. The government has failed to provide strong leadership in handling this crisis and is instead resorting to undemocratic means to stay in power.”

There were a record 10 deaths related to Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, and today’s tally of 710 new cases brings the total number of infections in the country to 24,514. - FMT