By Clara Chooi
IPOH, Oct 27 – The police today obtained an injunction from the Magistrate’s Court here preventing members of the public from entering within a 50-meter radius of the Perak State Secretariat building.
Copies of the court order were being pasted up on lamp posts and pillars along offices outside the secretariat building about 8.30pm tonight.
The order, which named Ipoh district police chief (Asst Comm Azisman Alias) as applicant and the public as respondent, was obtained after the court was convinced that gatherings in support of Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional would be held outside the secretariat building, during the duration of the state assembly sitting from tomorrow until Friday.
The order states that the court believed that although no applications were made to obtain permits, the gatherings would still be carried out.
“The court finds that there is a need for immediate action to be taken to prevent any action that would disrupt public peace or bring danger to lives or public safety or riots or sudden fights, should the gatherings take place,” said the order.
As such, the order states that the court found that an ex parte injunction was needed to be granted quickly, in view of the fact that the sitting would be commencing tomorrow, Oct 28.
“In view of this, you (members of the public) are prohibited from being present or being within the 50-metre radius of the State Secretariat fence on Jalan Panglima Bukit Gantang Wahab, as well as Jalan Istana from SJKC Poi Lam until SK Jalan Panglima Bukit Gantang and Jalan Panglima Bukit Gantang Wahab from SJKC Poi Lam until the Jalan Panglima Bukit Gantang Wahab flyover, from 1am on Wednesday, Oct 28 until 11pm on Friday, Oct 30, 2009,” said the order.
On a separate matter, PR lawmakers are crying foul over notice delivered to ousted Speaker V. Sivakumar yesterday, ordering the latter to be present at the police station today to give his statement on an investigation involving “the misuse of public property”.
Perak DAP chief Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham said that the timing of the request to summon Sivakumar to the police station two days before tomorrow’s impending sitting “leaves room for suspicion that the police is not fair and is selective in its investigation.”
“We suspect that this is just a trap to arrest Sivakumar,” he told The Malaysian Insider.
Ganesan had earlier lodged a police report against Sivakumar for impersonating the Perak Speaker and wrongfully using the Speaker’s ceremonial robes.
He had also accused the latter of stealing the robes.
“How could he (Sivakumar) have stolen the robes when everyone know that it had been in his possession since he was appointed as the Speaker,” said Ngeh.
He added that Sivakumar had not complied with the notice, which was sent under Section 111 of the Criminal Procedure Code, and did not appear at the police station to give his statement.
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What kind of democracy is the country or state practising?
The police, courts or just anybody do not have the right to order the people NOT to attend what is essentially A PEOPLE's Assembly!
Don't call it the people's assembly then, call it whatever except the people's assembly. Democracy in Malaysia is dead!