REGARDLESS of what happens in the next general election, Malaysians need to build a better Malaysia by empowering people through laws.
“There are laws that govern the freedom of people but they do nothing to empower Malaysians.
“As such we need to review all the laws that restrict the freedom of speech, expression and association,” said human rights lawyer Syahredzan Johan in Kuala Lumpur today.
Using the media as an example, Syahredzan said he did not oppose ownership of media companies by political parties but there cannot be laws to restrict how media companies function.
“Laws such as the Printing Presses and Publications Act (PPPA) limit the ability of the media to play its role as the fourth estate. They must be free to criticize and comment without getting show cause letters from the government.”
A recent suggestion for news portals to register with the government is another example of the kind of restrictions they want to install, he added.
“We need to have a law reform commission to look at all the laws that do not empower Malaysians,” said Syahredzan during the Envisioning The Future – Beyond GE14 forum today.
The other speakers were Kluang MP Liew Chin Tong and prominent lawyer Ambiga Sreenevasan. The forum was moderated by Zan Azlee.
Adding to it, Syahredzan said the law making process was also in need of reform.
“Currently bills are rushed through in Parliament in a matter of days. There’s not enough time for the MPs to scrutinize the bills. There should be a reasonable gestation period in Parliament.
“One way to do this is to put the bills through a committee stage so that the MPs can get sufficient feedback from stakeholders.”
Using the recent Tourism Tax Bill as an example, Syahredzan said if the government had gotten feedback from the states and tourism players, it would not have resulted in problems.
Another point he raised was the use of parliamentary whips.
“MPs should be allowed to vote based on their conscience or constituencies’ interest. The first loyalty should be to their constituency and not party.
Syahredzan also suggested bringing back local council elections and giving Malaysians greater access to justice by expanding the Legal Aid Foundation.
“They should get more funding so that LAF can cover more types of cases. It’s currently limited to criminal cases.
“People will have more faith in the system if they are given more access to the legal system.”
Moving ahead, Kluang MP Liew Chin Tong said Malaysia needs to reconfigure its political ideas and rethink the role of government-linked companies (GLCs).
“We need to decentralize and empower all the state governments by giving them a bigger share of the income tax collections. They would then be able to plan their economies better.
“Due to its financial and legal limits, the state government can only rule over religious matters, natural resources and land issues. By empowering them they can develop their economies better,” said Liew.
The DAP political education director also took GLCs to task for profiting from Malaysians.
Using private hospitals and the North-South highway as examples, Liew said GLCs currently own most of them and is the reason why the fees are so high. – September 30, 2017.
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