KUCHING, March 11: By the concept of the right to life, no one should be denied entry into police stations and government hospitals.
This is the opinion of Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) president Voon Lee Shan who said this in response to the recent cases where members of the public were denied entry into police stations and government hospitals.
The refusal of entry to these premises to him is against the concept of the right to life.
He raised two questions about the dress code. Firstly, does the government dress code come within the constitution? Secondly, whether it is just and fair in the circumstances to deny entry to seek help from government departments in times of stress?
“I would say that a law that prevents members of the public from coming to police stations to report crimes could not be fair or just under the constitution.
“At the same time, a law that prevents patients from seeking treatment in government hospitals is not just because their lives were affected. They have the right to life under Article 5 of the Federal Constitution,” said Voon in a press statement today.
He said the right to life under Article 5 of the Federal Constitution includes the right to live with human dignity and all that goes along the concept of necessities to life.
“To seek protection from the police and treatment in hospitals are necessities to life. For these reasons, I hope government departments will no longer chase off members of the public from seeking help.
“You could not impose morality policing on members of the public who enter government buildings seeking help,” said Voon.
He added that perhaps a dress code could be imposed in houses of worship because prayers to seek God’s help and give thanks to God could be done anywhere, not necessarily in houses of worship. — DayakDaily
