No more truths in Malaysia once Anti-Fake News Bill is passed

The tabling of the Anti-Fake News Bill 2018 in Parliament on March 26, 2018, signifies the launch of the Barisan Nasional’s first “ultimate weapon” to win the forthcoming general election by force.

I deem the Bill as unnecessary, undemocratic and unjust at multiple levels.

We heard from Deputy Communications and Multimedia Minister Jailani Johari that other than government-verified information, any news on 1MDB is “deemed as fake news”.

This is no doubt an unscrupulous move by the BN to dismiss any accusation from the public and opposition on 1MDB matters. The government is now in business of determining what are truths and what aren’t.

What and how exactly should BN determine if any information is true or fake? Will a “truth committee” be formed to process all information and give them a “true” label?

If there are no proper ways for all information to be scrutinised before the government can label them as fake, there is little credibility from the BN for Malaysians to be convinced of the necessity and genuineness of this Bill.

Looking at the way Jailani Johari commented on 1MDB news, it seems that a news is only deemed “true” if the BN deems it to be.

After being regarded as the “Kleptocracy at its worst”, not only there was absence of any degree of remorse or political will from BN to clear Malaysia’s name, we now see the BN taking it a step further by enacting a law to conceal it.

What more hope can Malaysians expect of Malaysia as a progressive and strong nation when its government is never interested in dealing with the most serious corruption scandals among other known cases?

If the BN is prepared to dismiss any statement and accusation pertaining to 1MDB as fake, then it means the ruling coalition is prepared to dismiss anything and everything that can be possibly said and written by the Opposition.

There will be no more truths in Malaysia!

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KERK CHEE YEE is the political secretary to DAP Parliamentary Leader Lim Kit Siang. -Mkini