Penang executive councillor Dr Afif Bahardin has been told to give his statement to the police in Bukit Aman, at 11am on Friday.

Afif - who is also the Seberang Jaya assemblyperson - said the details of this were sketchy. He was contacted sometime last week by an assistant superintendent going by the name of Cheng.

Afif said the statement wanted pertained to a report in an obscure online news portal, Malaysian Digest .

The national deputy Youth chief of PKR said the report allegedly quoted him as questioning the Federal Court’s recent verdict on Anwar Ibrahim, and urging people to go to the streets to rally.

"It is all very weird and vague and I do not want to comment further about this until I am told the details of why the police want my statement,” Afif told Malaysiakini .

Being called to Bukit Aman means Afif would have to make the trip to Kuala Lumpur.

"I have not spoken to the reporter of Malaysian Digest or given my statement to the newspaper,” he added.

On Feb 12, inspector-general of police (IGP) Khalid Abu Bakar warned that Afif and two others - PSM secretary-general S Arutchelvan and PKR supreme council member Fariz Musa - would be hauled up under the Sedition Act for their remarks criticising the Federal Court's Sodomy II verdict.

Both Arutchelvan and Fariz had been detained and later freed by the police.

The Feb 10 judgment of the Federal Court, led by Chief Justice Arifin Zakaria, which sent Anwar to five years' jail for sodomy, has been criticised by the international community, which deemed the conviction - second for Anwar - as politically motivated to end his political career.

‘No need to arrest Nik Nazmi at home’

On the same note, Afif condemned the arrest of PKR Youth chief Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, who was arrested last night for organising the ‘Kita Lawan’ rally in support of Anwar at the Sogo shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur on Feb 14.

Afif said Nik Nazmi is a “public figure, a state executive councillor for Selangor” and will surely cooperate with the police when he is needed to do so.

“There is no need to send 10 policemen to his home, where he lived with his wife and his child. Such high-handedness by the police cannot be condoned,” he said.

Nik Nazmi was freed early this morning.

Nik Nazmi’s arrest follows the detention of activist Adam Adli Abdul Halim and PKR supreme council member Fariz Musa for the same charge, although both have also been released by police.

“The police actions are meant to suppress political discontent and criticism of Anwar's court verdict,” Afif said.

Police should be for the people

He urged the police to remain professional in their duties, to respect freedom of expression and not to use hard measures to stop the people’s movement and democratic process of questioning court decisions.

“The Kita Lawan gatherings were done within the limits of the constitution and nothing unbecoming took place.

"We had to do it as we have no access to the mainstream media, which is controlled by the BN. How else do we send our message to the people?” Afif asked.

He said the recent arrest of opposition politicians and activists seemed to be a diversion tactic from more pertinent issues related to the police.

“The IGP should be acting on cases like who ordered ex-commando Sirul Azhar Umar to kill Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu.

“He should look into the various deaths in police custody, police corruption and Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's issuing a supporting letter for (alleged) gambling kingpin Paul Phua,” he added.

Afif said the integrity of the police and IGP were at stake and he urged the force to “serve the people and not your political masters”.