KUALA LUMPURMay 13 — DAP stalwart criticised today the Perikatan Nasional government’s move to limit the number of reporters allowed to cover the May 18 Parliament sitting, calling it the “thin end of the wedge” to control information and communications in the country.
“It is bad enough that it will be a one-day Parliament sitting, making a complete mockery of parliamentary oversight and scrutiny,” the Iskandar Puteri MP said in a statement.
“But the restriction on media coverage is adding ‘salt to injury’ as it will be the thin end of the wedge to control information and communication to impose media censorship in the country.”
Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Mohamad Ariff Mohd Yusof issued a directive limiting the physical coverage of the May 18 sitting for just state-owned media, saying it was necessary on health grounds.
Proponents of press freedom quickly condemned the decision as censorship. Organisations like Gerakan Media Merdeka disputed the justification, arguing that it was still possible to allow full coverage of the sitting while still maintaining safe physical distance.
Lim echoed the point.
“I do not believe that it is impossible to accommodate the media’s request to ensure full access to Parliament while adhering to effective ‘social distancing’ measures for the Parliamentary session on May 18,” he said.
“And I call on Parliament to discuss with media representatives to ensure that parliamentary coverage on May 18 will not have to depend solely on ‘official media.’”
The DAP lawmaker then said there is the obvious risk of political bias with the restricted coverage.
The PN government’s move to hold the Dewan Rakyat meeting for just a day has drawn accusations that it is trying to limit scrutiny on its response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Opposition MPs said debating the massive spending such as the RM260 billion Prihatin package meant to alleviate the effects of Covid-19 pandemic would need more than a day.
