‘Report not a matter of national security’
GOMBAK: The Council of Eminent Persons’ (CEP) 100-day report contains recommendations for the economy and is not a matter of national security, says Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Azmin Ali.
“Those are recommendations; it doesn’t involve national security but it is purely recommendations by the CEP to Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad on how to move forward with all these challenges,” he said.
Azmin’s remarks to reporters at an event here yesterday came about following questions by reporters about Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mohamed Hanipa Maidin’s announcement that the CEP report had been classified under the Official Secrets Act (OSA).
When pressed if Azmin supported that the report should be fully disclosed to the public, he reiterated that it was not a matter of national security.
“These are just suggestions to bolster efforts to boost the country’s economy and a few recommendations from the private sector,” he added.
He said the CEP had already completed its original task of providing suggestions to the Prime Minister for his consideration.
“From time to time, the Prime Minister tables these recommendations in the Cabinet (meeting) and we will discuss them.
“There are some recommendations that we will consider favourably and some need to be studied further. This is quite normal,” he said.
On another matter, Azmin said he was not in a position to give Nurul Izzah Anwar advice.
“Who am I to be giving advice (to Nurul Izzah)?” he asked about his tweet on Monday, which was believed to be aimed at the Permatang Pauh MP.
He had tweeted that the country “needs doers who are prepared to tough it out all the way, not cry babies”.
When pressed further as to whom he might be referring, he said he was merely giving advice to himself.
His tweet came following Nurul Izzah’s interview with The Straits Times, which gained much public attention when she labelled Dr Mahathir a “former dictator”.
Yesterday, Azmin, who is Gombak MP, visited 89 victims whose homes were damaged when trees fell on their houses due to a storm.
He said he would be discussing with the state government and the Selangor State Development Corporation on how to relocate them from their houses, built on the riverbank, to safe and affordable houses.