Pakatan Harapan has urged the government to scrap or postpone the National Security Council (NSC) Bill 2015 that it plans to bulldoze through Parliament today.

"I want this law to be scrapped. If the government still wants to proceed, then give us sufficient time (to prepare for a thorough debate at the Dewan Rakyat)," said Mohamed Hanipa Maidin (Amanah-Sepang).

"We were busy with the Budget 2016 debate […] we did not have sufficient time (to prepare for the bill). The whole bill contains many draconian and repressive provisions," he said.

"If the bill is passed today, we will be moving towards a police state. We are going to fight it tooth-and-nail," he said.

"I hope justice and common sense will prevail; let the government withdraw the bill," he said at the press conference at Parliament's lobby.

The new act, tabled only on Tuesday, gives the National Security Council the power to declare a place a 'security area' and security forces can step in to arrest and seize without warrant.

"The first question to ask is why is there a hurry for the bill to be passed? This is a bill to allow the prime minister to make regulations relating to fundamental liberties guaranteed by the Federal Constitution," said Gobind Singh Deo (DAP-Puchong).

"It is our view that bills like this must be first studied in detail. The debate must come across very clear to ensure there is no abuse and misunderstandings later," he said.

Gobind then asked Azalina Said Othman, minister of the prime minister's department, to have the bill to postponed to the next sitting.

Gooi Hsiao-Leung (PKR-Alor Setar) said democracy would be dead if the bill comes into force.

"This allows the Umno-BN government to define what amounts to social-political stability and national unity.

"With the great powers given to the prime minister, Dataran Merdeka will be declared as a security zone permanently. And we can forget about Bersih 5 or Bersih 6," he said, adding that the bill was meant to repress civil society.

"I strongly urge all BN component parties including the MCA, MIC and Gerakan to strongly oppose to the bill," he added.

Herald dictatorship

Azalina said the arrangement as to when the bill was tabled was requested as such by the relevant government agency.

"This is the prerogative of each ministry and not because of the speaker or the decision of a minister," she told reporters at the Parliament lobby.

The NSC bill was tabled on Monday to be debated and pushed through today, the last day of the Dewan Rakyat sitting for this year.

In decrying the NSC bill, senior lawyer and Human Rights Society (Hakam) president Ambiga Sreenevasan said it would ' unleash a monster ' while Lawyers for Liberty fears it would herald a dictatorship.

[More to follow]