Madani leaders rose from street protests, haven't lost their roots - Saifuddin

Summary

• Pakatan Harapan secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail dismisses claims that the government has changed after gaining power.

• He emphasises that its leaders, many of whom emerged from street protests, remain committed to their principles.

Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail has rejected claims that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's government has changed since coming to power.

The Pakatan Harapan secretary-general emphasised that the coalition’s leaders, many of whom started their political journey through street protests, would not forget the foundations of their struggle.

“Recently, one of the protests that received a lot of attention was an anti-corruption rally.

“The general reaction at the time suggested that this government had lost its roots. The perception was that once they were in power, their stance changed. That is not true.

“In fact, the current leaders are graduates of the ‘street school’ (sekolah jalanan).

“We have never lost our roots,” he told reporters in Putrajaya today.

Saifuddin said this when commenting on the government's decision to amend the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012, which will remove the requirement for rally organisers to get permission from premises owners.

According to him, since taking over the Home Ministry, the police rejected only two to three percent of all assembly applications received.

“Statistics show that in 2023, a total of 10,000 assembly notifications were submitted to the police, with 98 percent of gatherings proceeding without restrictions.

“In 2024, more than 7,000 notifications were received, and 99 percent were approved,” the minister said.

Saifuddin clarified that a small fraction of gatherings faced issues not due to government restrictions but because venue owners refused to grant permission.

“Only two to three percent of assemblies faced issues because the venue owners did not grant permission, not because of government-imposed restrictions,” he said.

‘Current law must be followed’

He said the government agreed to place the requirement under a moratorium until the amendment was implemented.

“Whether we agree or not, the requirement to obtain permission from premises owners is in the current law and must be followed.

“But now, we have agreed to amend it, and until the amendment is made, the requirement will be under moratorium,” he explained.

Earlier today, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced in the Dewan Rakyat that the government had agreed to amend the Peaceful Assembly Act to remove the requirement to obtain permission from premises owners before holding an assembly.

“This means that the requirement to obtain approval from premises owners, as stated under certain sections, will be amended and removed.

“Section 11 of the act, which requires approval from premises owners or residents and is currently being disputed, will be removed from the existing rules,” he said.

However, Anwar noted that organisers would still be required to notify the police of their assembly plans at least five days in advance.

This measure aims to ensure the authorities can manage security, traffic, and the smooth running of the assembly.

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