Apology not ticket to be cleared of offence, cops free to investigate Sanusi - Azalina

SHAH ALAM - Raising issues which could cause disunity, disrupt public order or being disrespectful of the royal institution are offences which could not be resolved through an apology.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said an apology was not a legal defence in criminal law.

Therefore, she insisted that the police were free to investigate anyone who raised the 3R issues (race, religion and royalty) which were against any law without any intervention by any parties.

"I would like to draw attention to the act of Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor in his recent political talk which questioned the authority of Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah in regards to the appointment of the Selangor Menteri Besar.

"The government wants to emphasise that although freedom of expression is a constitutional right of every Malaysian citizen under Article 10(1)(a) of the Federal Constitution, this freedom is subject to Article 10(2) of the Federal Constitution to ensure that peace and harmony are preserved.

"As a politician or any public figure, we should be aware that our speech has the power to influence the public especially during the election season," she tweeted, today.

Sanusi was reported to have apologised to Sultan Sharafuddin for his remarks that were allegedly insulting to the Selangor royal institution.

The Perikatan Nasional (PN) election director said he had written a letter to the Sultan of Selangor explaining the true meaning of his speech which he claimed has been twisted by Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN).