SHAH ALAM – Bersatu Armada chief Muhammad Hilman Idham has slammed the Madani government for what he claims is a failure to uphold its promises on civil liberties, particularly the right to free speech.
Responding to questions about freedom of expression, Hilman argued that the government had not lived up to its reformist image and instead had shown a growing tendency to suppress dissent.
He said that freedom of speech was not merely a political slogan but a constitutional right that must be defended, a right he believed was increasingly being undermined under the current administration.
"We’ve seen a series of incidents involving individuals, even leaders, being silenced from expressing their views.
"At the same time, this government has failed to deliver on its earlier pledge to uphold the people’s right to free speech, a promise they themselves made before coming to power,” he told Sinar Daily when met earlier here today.
Hilman referred to several recent instances where Opposition figures and government critics were allegedly denied the space to voice their opinions.
Such actions, he said, stood in stark contrast to the promises made by the ruling coalition before coming to power, pledges that included defending democratic freedoms and promoting open political discourse.
Hilman, who was also the Gombak Setia assemblyman, said the government’s approach to criticism had eroded public trust and exposed a disconnect between its rhetoric and governance.
According to him, any administration that sought to silence its critics ultimately betrayed the very values it claimed to represent.
While acknowledging that freedom of speech must be balanced with responsibility, he maintained that democratic institutions should never be used as tools to stifle legitimate expression.
His remarks came in the wake of the arrest of political activist Chegubard, whose real name is Badrul Hisham Shaharin, in connection with the recent ‘Himpunan Turun Anwar’ rally at Dataran Merdeka.
Chegubard was detained at his residence to assist in investigations, with police confirming that four reports had been lodged over the event, which drew an estimated crowd of 18,000 people.
Investigations were being conducted under several laws, including the Minor Offences Act 1955, the Penal Code, the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 and the Sedition Act 1948.
One of the reports concerned the flogging of an effigy resembling a local political leader near Masjid Negara and was being handled by Federal Police’s Classified Criminal Investigation Unit (USJT).
Meanwhile, three other cases related to drone activity during the rally had been referred to the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM).