Police probes DAP life adviser for ‘Malaysian Spring’ statement

By Syed Jaymal Zahiid
May 22, 2013

KUALA LUMPUR, May 22 – Police have opened an investigation on DAP National Chairman Dr Chen Man Hin for allegedly conspiring to create public disorder when he used the term “Malaysian Spring” in a private email correspondence, party stalwart Lim Kit Siang revealed today.
The Gelang Patah MP (picture) said Chen was now investigated under Section 112 of the Criminal Procedure Code, supposedly for plotting to overthrow the government through street demonstrations similar to those in the Arab Spring.
“This is sheer nonsense and a pure waste of police resources, manpower and time when there are more important things for the police to do, as keeping Malaysians free from crime,” Lim said in a statement.

According to the Gelang Patah MP, Chen had his statement recorded by the police recently.
The revelation comes after Lim cited a front-page report in Sunday’s Mingguan Malaysia broadsheet in which the police chief had said he was investigating a purported opposition plot to overthrow the federal government through street demonstrations.
The DAP veteran said he welcomed the investigation but questioned the basis for it, pointing out that the person who had made the accusations had not even lodged a police report prompting the IGP to instruct his own officers to file one to enable the police to take action.
Lim noted that police reports had been lodged against former Court of Appeal judge Datuk Mohd Noor Abdullah over the latter’s provocative remarks at a public forum in which the latter had allegedly blamed the Chinese as ingrates for betraying the friendship of Malays and urging the Malays to defend their rights.
The police have yet to open an investigation on the complaints.
Lim slammed the investigation on Chen as a “wild goose chase” as it was merely based on the “irresponsible” and baseless allegations made by politicians from the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition.
The DAP stalwart reminded the newly appointed Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar and Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi that they should be focusing on fighting crime instead of “playing politics” by launching a witch-hunt on opposition leaders.
Lim pointed out that while Khalid was busy “wanting to play politics”, the police have failed to tackle rising crime, noting that even the sister of the Deputy Prime Minister was a victim to a house break-in in Petaling Jaya recently.
Khalid’s own sister was also another victim of house break-in in Mantin, Selangor, the DAP leader added.
“The new Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar should be censured for wanting to play politics to please his political masters instead of focusing on his first duty to the people – to make Malaysians, tourists and investors safe from crime and the fear of crime,” he said.
Meanwhile Ahmad Zahid was reported to have said that the probe on Chen proved his seriousness in fulfilling his duty to maintain peace.
Lim, however, said the minister’s statement “cannot be more wrong” and that he “had a wrong sense of priorities”.
Putrajaya has sought to address concerns over the crime rate and introduced crime-reduction as a National Key Result Area (NKRA), which the police and the government’s efficiency unit Pemandu said has been successful in reducing crime.
But the ubiquity of crime reports, both in the news and shared in social media, have led to doubts over the veracity of the authorities’ professed drop in crime.
Crime watchdog group MyWatch also accused the police in February of massaging the crime statistics, claiming cases of snatch theft and robbery without firearms as well as burglaries and house break-ins, were higher than the published crime index from January to October 2011.
The police have denied manipulating national crime figures.

Source themalaysianinsider