Suhakam: GE14 happy people saying no to elitist-oriented governance

KUCHING: The Human Rights Commi s s ion o f Mal aysi a ( Suhakam) hopes that the new Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad would set up a cabinet capable of dealing with national needs and international demands, instead of one based purely on political party calculations.

Ac c or d ing to Suha kam chai rman Tan Sri Raza l i Ismail, Malaysia has not had ‘an illustrious set of ministers’ that meets the criteria of ‘ fit for purpose’.

In this regard, he says Suhakam would be looking for improvement.

“Suhakam will find occasions in the future to remind the Prime Minister of the election promises, which include commitments to human rights, democracy and the rules of law,” he said in a statement issued yesterday.

Razali stressed that looking at the outcome of the 14th general election ( GE14) , the people had ‘ underscored that governance could no longer be elitist- oriented, but must include multiple stakeholders’.

“Suhakam has not enjoyed a mut u a l l y - r e i n f o r c i n g relationship with the government; it wants a functioning relationship with Parliament, including the latter ( Parliament) debating Suhakam’s annual reports,” he said.

Ra z a l i a l so s a id the commission had proposed for the examination of the shortcomings and discrepancies in GE14, particularly the narrow and rigid control of the Election Commission which itself must be revamped, in keeping with what other democratic countries had done.