DPM: All political parties must respect opponents
GEORGE TOWN: Giving assurance that the police will be neutral, the Deputy Prime Minister urged all political parties to respect their opponents during the general election.
Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said if any political party decides to use a common logo for the polls, that decision should be respected.
“I do not want any incident like bringing down or tearing up the Opposition party’s flags.
“I hope the respective party machinery will conduct surveillance to help the police check such provocative incidents,” he told reporters after his working visit to the state police contingent head-
quarters here yesterday.
Dr Ahmad Zahid’s comment came in the wake of the announcement by Pakatan Harapan that its parties – including the temporarily disbanded Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia – would be contesting under the PKR logo.
Urging everyone to respect the police, Dr Ahmad Zahid, who is also Home Minister, said the entire force would be mobilised to ensure that there was no trouble, adding that hotspots had been identified.
“It is not just certain states. There will be hotspots in all states – even those under Barisan Nasional and Penang, Selangor or Kelantan.
“The police will not take sides and my instruction is that they act professionally according to the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP),” he said.
Earlier in his speech, Dr Ahmad Zahid said the four stages of the polls – dissolution, nomination, campaigning and polling day – must be carried out with “zero
defect” by the police.
“We know that when we carry out our duties, we may face backlash from various parties.
“Do not feel demoralised, upset or provoked as we will conduct our duties professionally,” he told police personnel.
He also announced allocations totalling over RM4mil for the police to upgrade their facilities, barracks and for the state Malaysian Police’s Wives and Families Association (Perkep).