Friday 29 Mar 2024
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KUALA LUMPUR (Apr 1): A DAP lawmaker has described the arrests of The Edge and The Malaysian Insider executives and editors under the Sedition Act as a "poorly disguised" attempt to terrorise the press to stop it from persistent reporting of corruption and financial scandals.

Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua asked if the action taken was related to The Malaysian Insider (TMI) and The Edge's reports on scandals, including on 1Malaysia Development Bhd, the government-owned strategic investment fund.

"They have played a critical role in piecing together all the relevant facts on how 1MDB has accumulated RM42 billion of debt in five years and highlighting the shenanigans resulting in the wholly owned Ministry of Finance subsidiary being unable to even service its debts.

"These articles exposed the alleged mismanagement and financial wrongdoings in the firm and implicated business tycoon Jho Low (Low Taek Jho), who is close to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's family," Pua said in a statement today.

TMI had also been picking up exposes by whistleblower site Sarawak Report on 1MDB, including the recently exposed email trail between the company, Low and oil production company PetroSaudi International.

Pua, who is DAP national publicity secretary, said the exposes caused extensive damage to Najib's reputation and threatened his position.

He said any ordinary Malaysian would question why TMI was specifically targeted after its three editors were arrested two days ago and its chief executive and The Edge publisher detained yesterday.

"In particular, it also appears to be an act of revenge against The Edge Media Group for the relentless pursuit to get to the bottom of the monster RM42 billion 1MDB financial scandal.

The portal's managing editor Lionel Morais, Bahasa news editor Amin Iskandar and features and analysis editor Zulkifli Sulong were arrested on Monday evening, after the police and personnel from the Multimedia and Communication Commission of Malaysia (MCMC) came to TMI's newsroom at The Edge Media Group’s office in Mutiara Damansara.

They were detained overnight for sedition over a report published on March 25, which said the Conference of Rulers had rejected a proposal to amend a federal law that would pave the way for hudud to be enforced in Kelantan.  

Yesterday, The Edge publisher Ho Kay Tat and The Malaysian Insider chief executive Jahabar Sadiq were also arrested after they presented themselves for questioning at the Dang Wangi police station in the morning.

Morais, Amin and Zulkifli were released on bail last night after the magistrate's court rejected the police's application to remand them further for investigation.

Ho and Jahabar are still being detained pending the police's application for remand today.

"It is completely unprecedented that five people from the same news group are arrested and detained for sedition investigations over a single news story," Pua said.

He said the arrests and detentions were unnecessary and excessive, especially when cooperation was willingly given and they posed no threat of absconding.

He said there was also no need for remand as the police could take their statements over a few hours.

Pua said the police were using "extremely heavy-handed approaches and actions" to intimidate and frighten journalists and news agencies against reporting on scandals in the country.

"Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar must stop abusing the powers of the police to persecute those in the Fourth Estate and civil society.

"These people and entities are merely exercising their rights and despatching their responsibilities by acting as an effective check and balance to the government of the day in line with a democratic and progressive political environment," he said.

 

 

 

 

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