PARLIAMENT | Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man (PN-Kubang Kerian) accused the government of abusing its agencies to harass and spy on political opponents during elections.
In a speech at the Dewan Rakyat today, the opposition lawmaker claimed there were many complaints about such incidents including during the ongoing Sungai Bakap by-election in Penang.
“We have been receiving complaints about the abuse of law enforcement agencies during (election) campaigns, including in Sungai Bakap.
“Police officers were ordered to go to ceramah venues, where sometimes they sent up to 10 people to make recordings. They also went to opposition party operation centres to monitor.
“This is a harassment of our basic rights,” said Tuan Ibrahim during a debate on a report by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia.
RSN Rayer (Harapan-Jelutong) objected to the PAS deputy president's remarks and argued that police were deployed to monitor the situation for safety reasons.
The government lawmaker said police must also ensure that no one propagates hate during election campaigns.
In response, Tuan Ibrahim agreed the police have to do their job but said the measures taken were excessive.
“I agree that our security agencies have the right to make recordings. However, when they go to the extent of going into operation rooms and have a look at everything, it looks like an infringement on our freedom in a political context,” he said.
The PAS leader, who is the assemblyperson for Cheka in Pahang, said the police would also take photos when he attended events in his constituency.
According to him, the police took photographs of event attendees and of the contributions that he made to the people.
“Security agencies have been abused to protect the ruling party instead of protecting the people’s right to participate in politics,” Tuan Ibrahim added. - Mkini
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