Shabery Cheek : Media more oppressed during Mahathir's reign

KUALA LUMPUR: Former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has been urged to take a hard look at himself before speaking about freedom.
Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek said the country under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak was doing much better compared to the Mahathir era.
"We want to compare the form of freedom given during his time to what we have now.
"If today he speaks about freedom, it's better for him to look in the mirror and see what kind of freedom was offered when he was leading the government," he told reporters when met at the parliament lobby, here, today.
Shabery added that the public, as well as the media, was much more oppressed during Mahathir's reign.
"I would love to know what sort of freedom was given then? Press freedom? Was live coverage given to MPs?
"Were there people arrested under the Internal Security Act (ISA) during his time? Which I should point has since been abolished," he said, adding that the public could be the judge for themselves.
Shabery said this when asked to comment on whether he would attend a meeting between Mahathir and opposition MPs at the parliament today regarding parliamentary immunity.
He also regarded Mahathir, and his newly formed Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) as mere puppets to DAP.
He said a new party like Bersatu, which could offer a prime minister candidate but does not have enough constituency seats, was very likely to do DAP's bidding.
"Will other opposition parties give up their seats for Bersatu to contest? If no, then they will be mere puppets to DAP," he said.