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NGOs:
Findings no threat to national security, so why the delay?
07/12/2009 The Star
PETALING JAYA: Non-governmental organisations are perplexed as to why the
Bukit Antarabangsa Final Landslide Report was not released earlier.
Transparency International-Malaysia (TI-M) president Datuk Paul Low said
the public deserved access to information on the findings as they did not
threaten national security.
“The public has a right to know the causes of the Dec 6, 2008 tragedy and
to gain an understanding as to what had happened,” he told The Star
yesterday.
The Cabinet decided to declassify the report that was restricted under the
Official Secrets Act (OSA) 1972 following an application by the Ampang
Jaya Municipal Council.
Low added that the OSA should be amended to allow for more transparency on
information that should be made available to the public.
“Because the (OSA) law is all-encompassing, the Government tends to hide
behind its provisions even though the issue is not a threat to national
security,” he said.
Low said the amendment should provide for a public list of what was
restricted under the OSA and release the rest.
Fomca secretary-general Muhd Sha’ani Abdullah said the findings of the
report had nothing to do with national security.
“The OSA can be easily abused,” he said.
“The Bukit Antarabangsa report had nothing to do with national security,
so why classify it as a secret in the first place?” he asked.
Muhd Sha’ani added that the report should be used as a guideline for
developers and house buyers.
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