BUKIT MERTAJAM, Oct 13 — PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has agreed with the police’s use of the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma) to address issues involving terrorism, including the detention of several individuals in connection with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
However, he said that certain aspects and sections of Sosma should be amended and improved on for the benefit of all parties, as the law has been deemed too harsh.
“We have been against this Act from the very beginning. However, if it is to do with counter-terrorism, I support the police’s action to use Sosma, not only against the LTTE, but also against all forms of terrorism,” he told reporters after opening the Penang PKR Convention here today, which was also attended by PKR secretary-general Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and PKR state leadership council chairman, Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik.
Anwar said this when asked to comment on the statements of several Pakatan Harapan leaders who have protested against the police’s use of Sosma in the detention of 12 individuals, including two assemblymen for allegedly promoting, supporting, instigating, encouraging, raising funds and possessing LTTE-related items.
Commenting further, Anwar, who is also Port Dickson MP, denied that some former PKR members were also arrested with regard to the case.
“I have not received any report on current or former PKR members being involved or arrested by the police’s Counter-Terrorism Division (E8),” he said.
In another development, Anwar, who is also the chairman of the parliamentary caucus on reform and governance, said he was of the opinion that Budget 2020 did not give much focus to the agriculture industry, considering it was one of the key industries for the country.
He said the agriculture industry also needed a special budget to grow as the country has resorted to importing RM52 billion worth of agricultural produce each year. — Bernama
