LCS scandal unresolved despite court win, says ex-Muda sec-gen

Summary

• Ex-Muda secretary-general Amir Hariri welcomes the Federal Court’s decision striking down Section 9(5) of the Peaceful Assembly Act, but says it shouldn’t distract from the government’s failure to act on the LCS scandal.

• Amir, who was charged over a protest of the LCS scandal in 2022, says the fight for accountability will continue as long as “the corrupt and the crooks” evade justice.

• The court ruled the five-day notice requirement was unconstitutional, with calls mounting for all related cases to be dropped and the law to be amended.

Amir Hariri Abd Hadi said today’s Federal Court decision striking down the five-day notice requirement for rally organisers should not distract from the littoral combat ship (LCS) controversy.

The former Muda secretary-general was charged with alleged failure to notify authorities before holding a protest over the LCS issue in 2022.

“(Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim) and his administration must be prepared, because as long as they fail to bring the corrupt and the crooks to justice, the fight will go on.

“Not everyone can be fooled - unlike their bootlickers and sycophants,” Amir said in a statement today.

Earlier, a five-member bench led by Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat delivered a unanimous ruling deeming Section 9(5) of the Peaceful Assembly Act (PAA) 2012 unconstitutional.

Tengku Maimun said Section 9(5) of the PAA imposes a punishment that exceeds the limits permitted under Article 10(1)(b) of the Federal Constitution, which guarantees the freedom of speech, assembly, and association.

She also described the section as “a disproportionate intervention” that amounted to a prohibition rather than a restriction on the guaranteed rights.

She also directed that Amir’s ongoing criminal proceedings be remitted to the High Court and disposed of in line with the apex court’s judgment.

Amir had faced a fine not exceeding RM10,000 if found guilty.

Despite today’s decision, he stressed that this is not the end of his push for accountability in the multi-billion-ringgit controversy.

‘Stop probes, drop charges’

Meanwhile, DAP lawmaker Syahredzan Johan urged the authorities to drop all ongoing probes into rally organisers who failed to provide advanced notice.

Highlighting that a law deemed unconstitutional should not be enforced by any government branch, the Bangi MP also called on the public prosecutor to withdraw any pending court charges related to today’s decision.

“With the decision by the Federal Court, the government should also take cue from the grounds of judgment and explore amendments (to the PAA) to make sure that the law is in line with constitutional principles when it comes to providing notice to the authorities,” Syahredzan added in a statement today.

In February, Putrajaya granted a moratorium allowing peaceful assemblies to proceed without requiring permission from venue owners, pending Parliament’s passing of amendments to the PAA.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the proposed amendments, which are expected to be tabled in the Dewan Rakyat this month, will remove the rule requiring organisers to obtain approval from venue owners. However, he said then that organisers will still have to notify police in advance.

Syahredzan also pointed out that today’s verdict provides a final adjudication by the Federal Court on the constitutionality of Section 9(5) of the PAA.

He said that while the Court of Appeal previously ruled in PKR MP Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad’s favour in the latter’s appeal to strike out a charge against him for organising a rally in 2013, it had then made a contrasting decision in a separate case.

“Thus, we had two conflicting Court of Appeal decisions on the constitutionality of Section 9(5) of the PAA, and until today’s decision, there was no conclusive determination by the Federal Court on this issue,” Syahredzan said.

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