PUTRAJAYA: Penang-based lawyer Shamser Singh Thind should apologise for claims that a post he made relating to Asia Mobility Technologies Sdn Bhd (Asia Mobiliti) was blocked due to a deputy minister's instructions.
Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said the decision to take down any content posted on social media platforms was based on the platform's guidelines, despite complaints lodged by any members of the public or requests made by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
"I want to emphasise that in terms of the process, the public can file a complaint with MCMC if they need certain action from the regulatory body on a post or material (posted on social media platforms), not just the ministers.
"(And) I also want to stress that the action to take down any post is up to the platform itself if they find violations in the posts made.
"Not all requests made by MCMC were fulfilled by these platforms, (as) some only allowed 50 per cent of what was requested.
"Hence, it is not right for the individual to make such accusations, and I hope he apologises to the deputy minister," he told a press conference today.
Fahmi said this in response to Shamser's claim that his post dated May 26 was blocked for Malaysian viewers following a legal request by MCMC due to instructions made by Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching.
The Penang-based lawyer reportedly said he was informed of the matter by Facebook on June 3, which mentioned that the action was based on a legal request by MCMC as it had gone against local laws.
He then issued a letter of demand to MCMC for allegedly influencing Facebook to block his post on Asia Mobiliti, stating that MCMC's move was against the freedom of speech guaranteed by the Federal Constitution.
MCMC has since denied claims made by Shamser and said the actions taken by the commission over the post were due to complaints received, in line with its standard operating procedures (SOP).
Previously, certain quarters had raised issues of preferential treatment for Asia Mobiliti, a firm associated with Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh's husband, during the tender process of the Selangor Demand Responsive Transit (DRT) project.
This came after the revelation that Yeoh's husband, Ramachandran Muniandy, was Asia Mobiliti's chief executive officer.