The power given to the prime minister to declare “security zones” under the National Security Council (NSC) Act 2016 was akin to giving the prime minister the “power of life and death” over people.
Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said this is why the proposed amendments to the NSC Act, tabled in Parliament earlier today, include transferring the power to declare “security zones” to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
“It was the wrong law anyway. The power to declare emergency is with the king, of course with advice from the prime minister.
“But when you give the prime minister that power, it is possible for him to declare a certain area as a security area, and in that area, he can arrest people without going to court and if somebody dies, there will be no inquiry.
“So it will give the prime minister, actually, the power of life and death over people. This is terrible,” Mahathir said in a press conference at parliament today.
He stressed that such powers should belong solely to the king as it provides more “barriers” before security zones can be declared.
“So that is why we don’t wanna give the prime minister too much power to the point he can actually break the law legally,” he added.
[More to follow] - Mkini
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