JANUARY 12 — Suaram censures the declaration of state of Emergency by the government on the 12th of January 2021. This action by the Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin seems to be an attempt to stay in power when it is obvious that the PM has effectively lost his parliamentary majority to lead a government with the withdrawal of support from the MPs of Machang and later Padang Rengas.
Why is there a necessity for an Emergency when the heavily restrictive movement control order (MCO) has been seen to be adequate since March 2020? The futility of such an attempt was demonstrated when the monarch rejected the PM’s first attempt to declare an Emergency. Furthermore, the discipline that has been shown by Malaysians in 2020 during the period of MCO and subsequently CMCO is evident enough that a similar measure could have potentially reduced the number of daily infections and prevented Covid-19 from spreading further. The declaration of an Emergency is also not justified especially when it was announced one day after the government has decided to implement another round of strict MCO on the hardest hit states.
As such, the declaration of Emergency coupled with the suspension of Parliament and elections can only be construed as the PM’s gambit to cling to power in the name of combating the Covid-19. While it is certainly true that holding a general election when the pandemic is still ongoing would be folly; nevertheless, Suaram maintains that the state of Emergency is disproportionate to controlling the pandemic.
The federal constitution would be effectively suspended under Emergency rule and various civil and political liberties would be at risk when the federal government is given absolute power. The territorial Emergency declared by the Monarch for Batu Sapi, Gerik and Bugaya in deferring byelections would suffice if the government aims to avoid a repeat of what happened in the aftermath of Sabah’s snap election during September 2020. It is also possible for the Sarawak state government to pass through a state constitutional amendment to delay their state election until the pandemic situation improves.
With the suspension of Parliament, the Emergency has also robbed the country of its vital check and balance role in holding the government to account on its various controversial policies in the name of combatting Covid-19. This is a derailment of our democratic process and rolls back the country to the times when the voices of opposition and civil society have been muzzled.
We therefore call upon the government to rethink this misguided action to declare a state of Emergency upon the whole country. Democracy and the interests of the country cannot be suspended for the political survival of a select few.
This is the personal opinion of the writer or organisation and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail Online.
