Najib’s despotism worse than Dr.M’s “Dark Age”

Lim Kit Siang says that far from being the best democracy, Najib is using the Sedition Act to suppress the opposition.

KUALA LUMPUR: DAP’s Lim Kit Siang said Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s heavy-handed use of the Sedition Act to silence the opposition was “putting to shame Tun Dr.Mahathir’s 22-year ‘Dark Age’”.

The DAP Parliamentary leader said, “We are looking at the likelihood of six parliamentary and two state assembly by-elections as a result of the recent spate of arrests and prosecution of PR leaders.”

Lim said it was “the height of irony” that Najib announced in July 2012 that the Sedition Act would be abolished as part of his National Transformation Plan.

He added that far from being the “best democracy in the world”, Najib had achieved just the opposite with his brand of despotism.

“Five MPs and one state assemblyman had been charged with sedition in the six-year Najib premiership,” Lim explained.

While he admitted Dr.M “had recourse to the notorious detention-without-trial Internal Security Act”, he said it did not excuse Najib for silencing the opposition by using the sedition act “and a panoply of undemocratic and repressive laws” time and again.

Lim also said the blame lay not on Najib’s shoulders alone but Attorney-General Gani Patail and all cabinet ministers in the ruling administration.

He also said, “…all the Barisan Nasional component parties and leaders must either dissociate themselves from the democratic regressions or be held whether as principals or as having aided and abetted in the New Despotism in Malaysia.”

In the last ten days Rafizi Ramli, N.Surendran, Khalid Samad, RSN. Rayer and Nizar Jamaluddin have all been hauled to court on charges of sedition as have Teresa Kok and Tian Chua.

Anwar Ibrahim may also lose his seat in Permatang Pauh should he fail in his appeal at the Federal Court on the sodomy charge.