RPK : Its not about diet

Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar should be commended for his prompt response to the complaint that Raja Petra Kamarudin ( RPK) is being served food that is not suitable for him. Although the minister’s assurance that RPK will be served special diet is praiseworthy unfortunately but he seems to have lost focus of the real issue at hand.

The issue is not the quality of food that is being served but the reason for his detention without trial. Why should a law-abiding citizen be detained, denied proper food and subjected to the harshest treatment and denied all his personal freedom that he rightfully deserves?If he has committed any crime why isn’t he be subjected to the due process iof the law like any ordinary citizen? Why the extraordinary special treatment for him?

Malaysians of all walks of life and of all race, creed, political affiliation and would be more than pleased with Syed Hamid if only he had focused on the real issue behind the detention of RPK and give in to the overwhelming calls from the rakyat to free him and all others detained under a law that is being detested by the vast majority of citizens.Isn’t listening to the voice of the people the system of governance all about?

Despite being charged under the Sedition Act, the way RPK has been detained under the ISA smacks of an act of bad faith on the part of the minister.

The ISA is not only being detested by opposition politicians but even by members of the ruling BN coalition itself. It is significant that today it is also being opposed by the vast majority of the rakyat themselves.