BERSIH TO HOST CONGRESS TO PRESS GOVT ON ‘REFORM AGENDA’

PETALING JAYA: Bersih will host a congress to “build momentum” for the reform agenda and to call on the government to implement its promised changes more swiftly.

Bersih chairman Faisal Abdul Aziz said Malaysia is undergoing a “critical phase” that will determine whether it is on the right track towards building an inclusive, democratic and fair society, or going backwards by maintaining regressive policies.

He told a press conference today that failure to implement the reform agenda would “result in the loss of public trust in good governance, the conduct of clean and fair elections, and the enforcement of strict laws, particularly in protecting the parliamentary democracy system and the anti-corruption agenda”.

The congress is scheduled for May 25 at the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall.

Bersih said the congress is necessary “to provide momentum (and) pressure on all parties, whether the prime minister or the Cabinet”.

It is expected to feature speeches from former Parliament speaker Ariff Yusof, former Bersih chairman Ambiga Sreenevasan, Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement president Fahmi Samsudin, and Ideas chief operating officer Sri Murniati Yusuf.

Faisal said civil society can also submit proposals about electoral reform, human rights, separation of powers, and racial harmony.

“This congress is a mechanism to gather the voices of all NGOs, civil society, and students who love the country, to build momentum for their direction until the approach of the next general election,” he said.

At a gathering on Feb 27, Bersih demanded reforms to the Election Commission, including the involvement of a special parliamentary committee in selecting its chairman.

It also called for the prime minister’s tenure to be subject to a two-term limit, and the Sedition Act to be repealed.

The gathering was followed by a meeting with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim the following day, where Bersih presented its memorandum to the government.

2024-05-04T10:16:54Z dg43tfdfdgfd