The Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 does not give power to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to probe any such donations, it added.
The ministers leading the nation do not seem to have a firm grasp of the law and the Constitution, lamented the NGO.
“They are acting out of bounds. This is unacceptable.”
Bersih 2.0 said the same ministers deploring foreign funding came to the defence of Malaysian Official 1 (MO1) when he “received ‘donations’ amid allegations of massive misappropriation of public funds”.
Bersih 2.0 also questioned the inaction of the authorities against the Red Shirts failing to give any notice under the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 (PAA) for gathering outside Malaysiakini’s office last Thursday and Saturday.
A 10-day notice was required under the PAA, said Bersih 2.0.
If the authorities truly believe the law applies equally, Red Shirts leader Jamal Yunos should be investigated under Section 9 of the PAA 2012, the NGO said.
Furthermore, it added, Jamal’s threat to “runtuhkan” (collapse) part of Malaysiakini’s building should be taken seriously.
It urged Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Khalid Abu Bakar not to dismiss the threat as a mere “war of words”.
“He should investigate Jamal for criminal intimidation under the Penal Code,” the statement demanded.
The NGO charged that the authorities seemed to be wielding the law for their convenience.
“They are only concerned about views and actions they don’t support, all this supposedly under the guise of parliamentary democracy,” said Bersih 2.0.
The NGO went on to argue that people deserve an accountable and democratic government.
“There should be no double standards. It must not be allowed to happen.”
It envisions “strong, principled leaders who have the nation’s best interests at heart” emerging to lead the government.
Bersih 2.0 urged the people not be taken in by the authorities’ diversionary tactics.
“Their attention should be on the crucial issues,” said the statement, adding this included 1MDB’s grand corruption and “donations” channelled into Najib’s personal accounts for GE13, and the Election Commission’s (EC) “unconstitutional” redelineation exercise.
Not protesting was no longer an option, it summed up.
It called on the people to take to the streets on Nov 19 for its rally to demand for a better country.