I have requested DAP’s Legal Aid Bureau to examine how to defend the rakyat against the harsh and exorbitant increase in penalties for breaching MCO restrictions. The PN government had adopted a punitive approach by increasing compound fines from RM1,000 to RM10,000 for individuals, and to RM50,000 for corporations, under emergency amendments to the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988.
The government should educate the public to collaborate to defeat COVID-19. Instead of being rehabilitative, the government had chosen to adopt a retributive or punitive approach to MCO violators. This is wrong when a punitive approach is ineffectual in curbing the increase in COVID-19 cases but will lead to financial distress to violators, especially those from the lower income groups already suffering from the current economic recession.
An even-handed and uniform enforcement of laws, not double-standards between a Minister and the rakyat will go a long way to help reduce the number of COVID-19 cases. Further full implementation of the 3Ts of testing, tracing of all close contacts of COVID-19 positive patients and testing is necessary.
The current levels of compound fines would be sufficient to drive home the message to strictly comply with the SOPs. There is no need to force them to financial ruin when such penalties should be set based not on the wealthy but on the poor’s ability to pay. The PN government is essentially blaming the people for the recent escalation in COVID-19 cases that has made Malaysia the worst nation in ASEAN, when it is the PN’s Ministers incompetency, lack of leadership and mismanagement that is the real cause.
Head of DAP Legal Bureau and MP for Bukit Gelugor Sdr Ramkarpal as well as senior MP for Bruas Sdr Ngeh Koo Ham will be reviewing the amendments implementing the increase effective on March 11, where there is also no need for a warrant, to see how we can save Malaysians from financial ruin. Such review would also include defending the rakyat receiving such compounds in court.