A fortified Official Secrets Act 1972 (OSA) will surely push the country on the path towards a communist state, where citizens are afraid to criticise their leaders, says MCA Youth.

The wing’s legal bureau chief Ng Kian Nam describes attorney-general (AG) Mohamad Apandi Ali’s suggestion to increase the penalty for OSA on those who whistleblow ‘state secrets’, as well as on journalists who report these stories, as excessive.

“It’s not only superfluous but to make everyone quiet, after (the amendment), you increase the penalty. This will turn us into another communist country.

“Only in communist countries will you be locked in prison for criticising the leader,” he told Malaysiakini when contacted.

Apandi had told Sin Chew Daily in an interview published last Saturday that he plans to increase punishments under the OSA which currently ranges from between one to seven years in jail, to life imprisonment and 10 strokes of the rotan.

The AG’s proposal has also invited flak from within BN Youth ranks. Gerakan deputy Youth chief Andy Yong said the amendments, if it were to “protect corruption and cronyism”, render him “speechless”.

Yong also says the attempt to lock up journalists who refused to divulge the sources for their report on leaked documents is “an encroachment on press freedom and liberties”.

Ng pointed out how the proposed amendments to the OSA can also be used by the authorities to suppress the fourth estate - the media - to protect the interests of the leaders but not the people.

“Only when our leaders are defamed, will they then act very fast. Whose interests are being protected? The people’s or yours?”

Use defamation instead

Ng argued that defamation can be used to check freedom of speech from being abused, and is a widely accepted practice.

He also questioned the need to increase penalties under the OSA.

“Beyond defamation, it’s controversial to use OSA, Sedition Act, MCMC (the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission) Act to act against (the public); this seems to be about protecting government interests rather than the people’s.”

Apandi’s proposal to increase the penalties, Ng opined, is to divert public attention from 1MDB and Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s RM2.6 billion ‘donation-gate’.

“In 1MDB, for example, the media has brought up so-called official secrets on you, but you wish to take action against the whistleblower instead of clarifying it.

“This is akin to burying your head in the sand. You could publicly clarify the information if it is incorrect,” he suggested.

Should the amendments be used for protecting national security matters, Ng said the public could accept it.

However, Ng cautioned that the amendments should not be used to cover up public abuse.

‘Open docs to public’

He pointed out that the government should open up the official documents for public view, rather than hide them.

MCA Youth legal bureau, he added, is against Apandi’s proposed amendments and the matter will be brought up to the MCA Youth central committee.

Ng also slammed Apandi for not seriously looking into the mismanagement of 1MDB and Najib’s ‘Donation-gate’.

Describing Apandi’s move as going against public opinion, he said the separation of powers has been breached in investigations into the 1MDB fiasco.

Apandi had cleared Najib of wrongdoings in the controversial RM2.6 billion 'donation' scandal and SRC International money transfer cases in late January, in a decision heavily criticised by the opposition and civil society groups.

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