Reports filed against Kit Siang, Mat Sabu, M'kini for 'belittling Agong'

Three police reports have been lodged against DAP verteran leader Lim Kit Siang, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and Malaysiakini.

This is over the article titled Kerajaan sediakan titah Agung, kata Kit Siang (Agong's speech prepared by government, says Kit Siang) from yesterday, where the DAP veteran had said that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong was merely reading out a speech prepared by the government.

The reports were made by three individuals at three separate police stations, namely at Sentul, Wangsa Maju and Rawang.

"After reading the news fully, I have found that it is a direct insult to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

"Lim Kit Siang and Mohamad Sabu who gave their views and Malaysiakini which aired (the views) clearly have the intentions and motives to belittle the institution of the Agong," one of the complainants Mohd Khairul Azam Abdul Aziz told reporters today outside the Sentul police district headquarters.

He was accompanied by Mohd Shukry Roslan, who lodged the report at Rawang and Muhammad Zahiddin, who lodged the report at Wangsa Maju.

Mohd Khairul said that the article implied that the Agong was merely a "parrot who only knows how to mimic voices" without understanding what he was saying.

It also implied that the Agong is a weak institution who will read out whatever the government has prepared without any of his own thoughts inserted in the speech, he said.

As such, the article basically insinuated that people need not care about the Agong's speech as it was not prepared by him.

This makes the article seem to have seditious tendencies, said Mohd Khairul, who is a lawyer.

"It is a crime under the Sedition Act to belittle the Yang di-Pertuan Agong as the leader of the country," he said.

For now, they have only lodged a report against Malaysiakini for reporting on this, but if they discover that other news organisations have also reported on this, he said they might also consider lodging police reports against them.

'Leave the Agong out'

Mohd Khairul said Lim and Mohamad Sabu (or populary known as Mat Sabu), are politicians, so he understands if they have to "insult the prime minister and his wife" but they should leave the Agong out of it.

"We understand they are politicians, but politics should be among the rakyat only.

"There is no need to insult the Yang di-Pertuan Agong who is the umbrella that shades all Malaysians, regardless of religion and race. It's not nice.”

“If (they) want to insult the prime minister and his wife, we can understand as it is the job of a politician. But that should be enough, don't take it beyond that," he said.

Yesterday, the Agong in his opening address at this year's Parliament session urged parliamentarians to stop politicking for the gain of narrow interest, saying that he wanted them to appreciate their differing views instead of toppling and slandering each other. -Mkini