Najib: Cabinet has last say on bill to replace Sedition Act

The Cabinet has the last say on the Bill to replace the Sedition Act 1984, not the National Unity Consultative Council, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.

The prime minister said the Cabinet would decide on an appropriate law to replace the Sedition Act 1948 or otherwise.

He said the council was not the definitive or ultimate forum or platform to discuss or determine whether the National Harmony Bill was well suited to replace the Sedition Act.

"The views expressed on the matter (drafting of the Bill) should be discussed privately and the council is not the ultimate body, instead it is the Cabinet," he told reporters after chairing the UMNO Supreme Council meeting at PWTC here Friday.

He was commenting on former chief justice Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad's statement that Bar Council members were also involved in preparing three drafts of the Bill to replace the Sedition Act 1948.

On the UMNO Supreme Council meeting, Najib, who is also its president, said UMNO would take a stand and contribute opinions in the drafting of the Bill.

Hence, he said, UMNO would set up a sub-committee under the aegis of its constitution and law bureau to study and make recommendations on the draft Bill for the government's consideration.