Political violence should be dealt more seriously

Political analyst, Professor Dr Azmi Sharom said police should take the issue of political violence more seriously.

The emerging cases of political violence in the 13th General Election (GE13) has reached a serious stage.

“Political violence has been going on for quite a while. This is not the first time. Maybe it’s the first time it happened this way. The truth is political violence has been occurring since months ago.

“Politicians have asked the police to investigate and stop this bad development,” said the professor from Universiti Malaya.

He said peacekeeping responsibilities during campaigning should be carried by both sides.

“Both parties have already felt the impact of political violence and this is an unhealthy pattern and should be stopped immediately," added Azmi.

He also hoped that the police would act fairly towards both sides and refrain from being biased.

“Whoever becomes the victim, the matter should be investigated appropriately,” he said.

Meanwhile, political analyst from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Professor Datuk Dr Mohammad Agus Yusoff echoed Azmi’s opinion.

He said it’s about time the authorities take the appropriate action against those who are involved.

He added that political violence should be avoided to provide the chance for people to choose the best government to run the country for another five years.

"Why must we resort to violence? All parties should accept the campaigning from other parties, receive posters from other parties and compete in a healthy way,” added Mohammad Agus.