By Nancy Nais
KUCHING, Nov 24: The Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) has withdrawn their remand application against Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) president Voon Lee Shan and four other members namely Lue Cheng Hing, Phang Aik Hua, Chan Chee Wee and Danny Voon.
Earlier this morning, the five were brought to Kuching High Court building to be remanded under Section 117 of the Penal Code for investigations and offences under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act 1948/233, and Communications And Multimedia Act 1988.
They were allegedly involved in a protest convoy that roamed Kuching town yesterday evening from 5.30pm to 6pm with banners stating ‘Say No to PAS’ in several vehicles.
The five were represented by seven counsels; Lim Heng Choo, RJ Noel, Dominique Ng, Patrick Voon, Steven Sia and Alex Kong.
Speaking to the media outside the court room Ng said, “The police have withdrawn their remand application against our client. According to the investigation officer (IO), they were instructed by their superior to withdraw.”
As there was no charges mad, Ng said all of them were released on police bail by the Magistrate Court.
When asked why, Ng said no reason was given by the IO to the court.
“However, we are very unhappy because despite all of this, Voon and four others were still brought to court in handcuffs.
“This is an abuse of process and it has caused extreme embarrassment. We have asked that this incident to be put on record so that in future events it will be part of a malicious prosecution case against the police,” Ng said.
Meanwhile, Voon also complained to the court that he was unwell since his arrest but was not given medical attention.
Ng said the police delayed Voon’s request until about 5am when they finally took him to the hospital for a medical checkup.
“The police must remember and understand that while they have the power to arrest, they need to take into consideration a person’s medical condition. They cannot think that with the power to arrest, they don’t have to care about the rights of the suspects.
“At the same time, the police should be careful about using their powers and not simply abusing it.
“Since they’ve been told to withdraw the case, why are they still bringing our clients to courts in handcuffs, and only to release them? They can do it at the police station because they have no case against our clients,” Ng said.
He further asserts that everyone in Sarawak, including the Anglican Bishop of Kuching Datuk Danald Jute have been expressing their concern about Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) possibly considering working together with Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS).
“Therefore, what Voon and the others have done and expressed yesterday is reflecting what the rest of the population in Sarawak feels. There is nothing criminal about it,” Ng stressed. — DayakDaily
