Let's see if ACA really fair!

I got wind regarding the arrest of the UMNO State Assemblyman for Lenggeng Mustafa Salim on the evening of 31 August. I was just about to leave my house for KL to attend a wedding dinner of my post-grad classmate in UM. I heard that the guy was arrested in a restaurant in Mantin red-handed with cash in his hand. I immediately rang up a couple of media friends. Credit to them, they acted really fast and professionally. The news was uploaded on many news website on that night itself. Some of them waited at the ACA state HQ until 12.30 am but still could not get a glimpse of the accused or even get confirmation from the state ACA director.

I held a press conference on 1st September with other state Pakatan leaders and a few PR assemblymen. While i acknowledged the efforts of the ACA in their many arrests recently, i lambasted them for acting differently to politicians from different sides. The whole country watched the news in TV and saw in the headlines of newspapers of how the 2 PKR EXCO members of Perak state government were brought to the magistrate to be remanded and handcuffed just less than 10 days ago. Well, i am not being apologetic for my fellow PR colleagues. If they are proven wrong, by all means charge them and penalize them. But why humiliate them in such a way? Will they run away if they are not being handcuffed?

Now coming back to the UMNO assemblyman for Lenggeng. He was caught red-handed and brought to the ACA state hq for questioning. The whole process was completed within 7 hours as he was released on that night itself around midnight. No remand order for further questioning. Hence, save him from being photographed by the media on the way to the magistrate court.

During my press conference, one reporter asked me to comment whether ACA is not being media-friendly? The reporters complained that they were denied any information about the case from the authority and have to wait outside the compound and the accused left by back door without their knowledge.

I told them it is not that ACA being media-unfriendly. If the accused is a YB from Pakatan, i am sure they will open their door to welcome the photographers and will immediately hold a press conference about the arrest! Come on, we are in a wired world now. Do the ACA think that they can still cover such cases from public knowledge? Instead, they should be more professional by at least confirming the arrest and let the reporters have an early day home. To the ACA, i think you guys have to go for a "media relations" course!

Now, it took only 5 days for Perak ACA to charge the 2 PKR EXCO members. Will the NS ACA act as efficiently as their counterpart in Perak? Let's wait and see. I am waiting and counting on the days till the Yang Berhormat for Lenggeng be charged in court! .