BN trio face reprimand for Section 114A gripe

XCLUSIVE The cabinet has accepted a suggestion to reprimand three key BN leaders for their open objection to Section 114A of the Evidence Act 1950.

The trio are Deputy Higher Education Minister Saifuddin Abdullah, Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Gan Ping Sieu (left) and Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin.

Government sources told Malaysiakini that the cabinet made the decision at its meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin on Aug 15.

“It was suggested that the prime minister or deputy prime minister should summon the two deputy ministers and give them a warning because their actions went against the government's stance,” revealed one source.

“It was also suggested that Minister in Prime Minister's Department Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz should meet with the two deputy ministers and Khairy to hear their views, and provide them with the government's explanation.”

A day before the meeting, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, who was abroad then, had instructed the cabinet to discuss the contentious following a major online protest dubbed ‘Internet Blackout Day’.

However, the meeting decided not to review the amendment. The decision was later reaffirmed and explained by Nazri.

According to the sources, the cabinet was of the view that if action was not taken, it would jeopardise the government's credibility and weaken the administration.

“The cabinet also noted that the trio have been openly issuing statements contradicting government policies.
 "They should have convey their views through internal channels such as their ministers or political parties," a source added.

The sources also disclosed that the cabinet had pointed out that disciplinary action had been taken against defiant members of the administration since the era of second prime minister Abdul Razak Hussein, but this practice is absent in the current administration.

‘Not informed yet’

When contacted today, Khairy and Saifuddin said they have yet to be informed about the cabinet decision.

“Didn't receive anything yet, so no comment,” replied Saifuddin (right).

Khairy said he would meet Nazri and Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail today to pursue his views on the amendment.

Gan, Nazri and Gani has yet to respond to request for comments.