The home minister instead likened the proposed amendments and extension of powers of the CPA to a "form of transformation", in an apparent reference to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's national transformation plan. "This is not the return of the EO or the ISA. If you call it draconian, you are wrong," he said when asked at the Parliament lobby after tabling the Bill earlier. The CPA Bill was tabled for its first reading, along with a raft of several other Bills earlier today, in what is seen as a bid by the government to reinstate powers of detention without trial. The Bill seeks to introduce several new clauses, including the creating of a Prevention of Crime Board that will have the power to detain individuals for up to two years without trial. It also seeks to include a clause that makes it compulsory for suspects on conditional release to be attached with an electronic monitoring device, a new measure introduced by Putrajaya last month. The government is also pushing seven other Bills to amend related laws such as the Penal Code, Security Offences (Special Measures) Act, the Criminal Procedure Code and Evidence Act, which opposition lawmakers believe could be a move to consolidate the government's powers under the CPA. Zahid repeatedly shrugged off claims that the government is regressing on its earlier reforms, but declined to go into the details of the CPA bill. "I will go into the details once it goes for the second reading on Monday. If any of the opposition MPs want to give their views then, I will accept it with an open mind," he said. In 2011, the government surrendered its powers to detain suspects without charge for up to two years at a time when it abolished the Internal Security Act (ISA) 1960 and the Emergency Ordinance (EO) laws. Ahmad Zahid was a vocal proponent for the return of preventive detention powers after saying that its loss had led to a recent crime wave and shooting spree in the country. But he relented after Putrajaya dusted off the PCA that has since been used by police to arrest nearly 10,000 people in a nationwide crackdown on organised crime.