Govt parties may ‘use’ official events to campaign, says Ramasamy

 

P Ramasamy says while authorities can clamp down on opposition gatherings, it might not be that easy with government parties.

PETALING JAYA: The federal government and state caretaker officials have an unfair advantage if ceramahs and social gatherings are banned in the Melaka state election as they can go around it by declaring them as official events, says a DAP man.

“Such a ban might invariably assist political parties with power and connections to circumvent the ban to engage in some clandestine or even open gatherings,” Penang deputy chief minister P Ramasamy said.

“While it would be easy to clamp down on the gatherings of opposition parties, it might not be that easy with parties in control of the federal government,” he said in a statement today.

Health minister Khairy Jamaluddin yesterday announced a ban on ceramahs and social gatherings in the run-up to the Melaka polls from today until Nov 27, stating that this was necessary to curb the spread of Covid-19.

The election will be held on Nov 20 and nominations have been fixed for Nov 8.

In other words, said Ramasamy, the parties in the ruling coalition – Umno, Bersatu and PAS – might have an advantage over opposition parties such as PKR, DAP and Amanah

He also claimed that based on past enforcement of SOP violations, only opposition parties would have to bear the consequences if the ban is defied.

Khairy had said the government expected mass gatherings in Melaka after the Election Commission announced the polling date, adding that the ban on public gatherings is in accordance with the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (Measures within Infected Local Areas) Regulations 2021.

Opposition parties and electoral watchdog Bersih 2.0 have asked for a review of the ban, suggesting that tighter SOPs be imposed with strict monitoring to give all parties equal opportunities to reach the voters. - FMT