Be calm! People should not be unduly worried if emergency is declared - Prof Dr Nik Ahmad Kamal

KUALA LUMPUR: The people should not be unduly worried if an emergency order is declared by the government.

Legal practitioner of the International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM), Professor Dr Nik Ahmad Kamal Nik Mahmood said the move will not affect the lives of the people, instead the action is a measure to resolve the crisis that is plaguing the country.

"I think the people need not have to worry. If we learn from the history of the two declarations of emergency in Sarawak in 1996 and Kelantan in 1977, it is to resolve the issue of government crisis.

"It (the emergency) did not affect the people at that time. The process only took place in the government and could be resolved with the provision of certain ordinances or certain instructions," he told Astro AWANI in an interview via Skype, on Friday.

Commenting further, Dr Nik Ahmad Kamal said the situation that is happening in the country at this time is not the same as the emergency order made by the government in 1969.

"So, there was something we were afraid of then. But for this time, it will not happen like 1969.

“What is happening is that the executive will try to address the issue of political turmoil in the best way to ensure it can be resolved and also the issue of pandemics can be addressed well.

"So, I don't feel there should be any fear of what will happen," he added.

However, Dr Nik Ahmad Kamal added that the emergency period could not be determined as it depended on the extent to which the crisis could be resolved.

"What I understand is it is not set. It aims to solve a problem and when the crisis is over, it will end.

"But when we look at the 1969 emergency, it was only completed or terminated in 2011 and the emergency law expired in 2012," he said.