Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has slammed the actions of certain parties who are trying to politicise the decision of the attorney-general (AG) to review the penalties under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) 1972.
He said Mohamed Apandi Ali's decision should not be politicised by any party, including the opposition.
He said the decision by the AG was based on the provisions of the existing law.
"This (decision) should be respected. The AG's agenda is to enforce the law and not to politicise an issue and be inundated with the politicised interpretation of the issue, and this should not be seen as a political issue by anyone, including the opposition," he told reporters after attending a specialmeeting with Umno Johor at the Persada Johor International Convention Centre.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also Home Minister, was asked to comment on PKR vice-president Rafizi Ramli's intent on starting a social media campaign to gather support from the people, to reject the proposed amendments to the OSA.
Mohamed Apandi was quoted by a Chinese newspaper as saying that he was considering amending the OSA to increase the penalties against those who were involved in leaking state secrets, as well as those who reported from these sources.
He was said to have been looking at the possibility of imposing life imprisonment and 10 strokes of the rotan for those found guilty.
- Bernama
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