SHAH ALAM, Dec 31 — Selangor police have arrested a man in possession of a homemade explosive as authorities increase their security sweep in the wake of a purported bomb threat at tonight’s New Year countdown in Kuala Lumpur’s Dataran Merdeka.
Selangor deputy chief of police DCP Datuk Abdul Rahim Jaafar said the pipe bomb was found in a sling bag worn by the suspect, who was detained after a short police chase in Ampang on Sunday morning.
“Maybe he was paid to make it, because he has no motive. We were worried that it may have had something to do with the New Year celebrations, but we have yet to confirm any links,” he told a news conference here.
Police have been cracking down on organisers of a planned anti-price hike rally tonight, after claims circulated online of an alleged attempt to spark a movement to topple the government and of explosives that will be detonated during the rally.
They arrested the leader of the anti-price hike movement on Christmas Eve, and two days later also picked up the owner of a Facebook page in support of the movement for allegedly inciting the public to take part in the New Year’s Eve demonstrations to topple the government.
In a posting on the Royal Malaysian Police’s (PDRM) Facebook page here, Federal CID director Comm Datuk Hadi Ho Abdullah confirmed that the PKR strategic director was called in to assist with investigations.
He added that as of Sunday, a total of 1,151 police reports had been received nationwide about the rally, which the authorities believe is an attempt by several groups to overthrow the government.
Rahim said today police in Seri Kembangan also briefly detained one man and confiscated 56 t-shirts sporting various prints during the pre-dawn hours Monday, on grounds that the t-shirts were subversive.
He said police acted based on an advertisement placed online by the printer of the t-shirts, and the suspect is being investigated under Section 124c of the Penal Code for attempting to compromise a parliamentary democracy.
The prints on the t-shirts ranged from Bersih 2.0 to Angkatan Pemuda Insaf or API — a group which Rahim claimed was possibly linked to the now defunct Communist movement from Malaysia’s formative years.
The senior policeman declined to say if action will be taken on individuals who wear any of the t-shirts at the New Year’s Eve countdown, though he did allude to the possibility that it could cause public disorder.
“We are not worried about people wearing the shirts, but we are concerned about the provocation it could cause, just like what happened when some people flew the Sang Saka Malaya flag,” he said, referring to a Merdeka-eve rally in August.
“When they raised the flag, it caused a scuffle because there were some people who wanted to take it down.
“I urge the public, if you want to celebrate the New Year, please do it properly. Please don’t wear the t-shirts. If you had bought the t-shirt, please keep it... wearing the t-shirts could be seen as provocation, it could spark fights and also sully the good name of the country,” he said.
Last week, police listed four non-governmental organisations as allegedly planning to “cause trouble” during New Year’s Eve celebrations next week.
They are Turun, Solidariti Mahasiswa Malaysia (SMM), PKR-backed group Jingga 13 and youth group Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia.
On Friday, however, Mohamed Bukhairy Sofian, chairman of student movement SMM, reportedly said that its planned gathering at Dataran Merdeka on New Year’s Eve is to protest against the rising cost of living, and not to overthrow the Barisan Nasional government.
Anti-price hike movement Gerakan Turun Kos Sara Hidup chairman Azan Safar had also clarified last week that the price hike protest is not linked to another planned gathering, which allegedly aims to oust the government.
The mass protest was planned amid the various increases in the prices of goods and services, some of which have already taken place a few months ago, like the cutting of fuel and sugar subsidies, while other hikes are scheduled for next year, including electricity tariffs, assessment rates for KL properties, public transport charges and toll rates for major highways.
