The police have purportedly sent a letter to the Petaling Jaya mayor Mohd Azizi Mohd Zain to state that they do not support the “Bavarian Festival”, believed to be part of the Oktoberfest celebrations, at a shopping mall this month, citing security risks.
“Referring to the above matter, the Petaling Jaya district police headquarters does not support the Bavarian Festival.
“This stance is based on security intel that this event would become a target for militant attacks and disturb public peace,” read the letter spotted by Malaysiakini.
The letter, dated Oct 3, was addressed to the Petaling Jaya mayor’s office and bore the signature of district police chief Mohd Zani Che Din.
When contacted, Mohd Zani declined to comment, saying only that he has already given his opinion to the mayor.
A spokesperson from 1 Utama, the Bavarian Festival's organiser, would only confirm that they had already submitted their application to the relevant authorities and are awaiting their response.
Malaysiakini has also attempted to contact the mayor and is awaiting his response.
'Mayor will consult stakeholders'
Meanwhile, Petaling Jaya city councillor Derek Fernandez (photo), who is an expert on local government, explained to Malaysiakini that usually, applications for such events would come under Petaling Jaya city council’s (MBPJ) food enactment by-laws of 2007.
“So in this case, they would apply for a (temporary) permit... under the food enactment by-laws.
“The by-law designates the licensing authority to be the mayor or the secretary or any officers designated by the mayor.
“The by-laws do not legally require police approval as a condition of approval,” he said.
The inspector-general of police (IGP) Mohamad Fuzi Harun is right, Fernandez said, in saying that the power to allow or disallow such food events lies with the local authorities and not the police.
However, he said, the administrative practice in Petaling Jaya is that the mayor will call for input from relevant stakeholders, such as the police and Customs Department, to help him make the best decision, especially on issues related to the dispensation of liquor.
Even then, the mayor is still not legally obligated to follow the feedback he receives from these stakeholders, he said.
There is also a committee that assists the mayor in deliberating these issues, should the mayor choose to refer to them, he said.
The police have representatives on that committee, he said, along with the health department and many other internal departments.
“He is not legally bound to follow their recommendations, but he has to follow the policies passed and practised by the committee,” Fernandez stressed.
Despite that, he conceded that if the police states in writing to the mayor that there is a threat or risk of security to an event, the mayor would generally follow this advice.
“Of course the mayor has to take that (advice involving public safety) as something critical in his decision-making.
“If something were to go wrong, he would be accused of not following advice relating to security and public safety.
“It would not be proper of the mayor to rebuke or cast doubt on a letter issued by the police on a matter pertaining to security,” he said.
Previously, the ‘Better Beer Festival 2017’, which was supposed to be held this month as well, had been cancelled by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall, who cited political sensitivities.
Fuzi later revealed that the police had disapproved of the beer festival because they had received information that “militants” were planning to commit sabotage at the festival.
Meanwhile, the fate of a “German F&B Festival” in a mall in Klang continues to hang in the balance as they await advice from authorities on whether to proceed with the event or not.- Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.