Johor rejects any laws which go against constitution — Menteri Besar
ISKANDAR PUTERI: The Johor government not only rejects the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) which is a cause of worry for many people especially the Malays, but also vows to reject any laws which contravene the Federal Constitution and the Johor State Constitution.
Menteri Besar Datuk Osman Sapian said the stand of the Johor government was simple – with the uniqueness and firm foundation of the Federal Constitution, the Malaysian government does not need to ratify ICERD or any international convention which goes against the Federal Constitution.
“To the state government, the ICERD issue is settled. The federal government has also issued a statement that it will not ratify ICERD.
“My request is, do not politicise this issue any more, and ultimately cause disunity among the people,” he said.
Osman was replying to questions from Datuk Samsolbari Jamali (BNSemarang), Ayub Jamil ( Rengit), Datuk Ir Hasni Mohammad ( BN-Benut), Hahasri Hashim ( BN-Panti) and Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghani ( BN-Layang-Layang) who asked at the Johor State Legislative Assembly here yesterday the state government’s stand on efforts to ratify ICERD.
“Even though many countries have signed the ICERD but there are also many other countries which have not ratified it. Ratification simply means agreeing to be bound by it.
“As such, time must be given to study and conduct specific research on ICERD. The study must look at the relevant outcomes, especially in view of the plurality in this country,” he said.
On a separate issue, Osman said in preparation for the monsoon season this year, 669 evacuation centres have been identified in the state to accommodate up to 175,061 people.
Replying to questions from Mohd Izhar Ahmad ( PH-Larkin) and Hahasrin Hashim (BN-Panti), Osman said the Social Welfare Department had placed essential items at 10 disaster storage depots, five mini depots and 69 forward base stores in the state. — Bernama