Opposition MP, Saddam Hosein, is of the view that there must be a holistic fight to combat gender based violence.
Hosein recently chatted with izzomedia on the issue of pepper sprays as well as shared his view on the latest restrictions.
On the Pepper Spray legislation, which will be up for debate next Tuesday, 11th May, Hosein said “I did not have sight of the proposed Bill, but the issue I have taken is that this has come too late.
“We must give women and other vulnerable citizens a fighting chance. However, pepper spray and other non-lethal weapons are not the end all of the matter.”
Hosein said “There must be a holistic fight to combat gender based violence, this issue must be addressed from the social side, where we must look at preventative measures. It must be addressed in the criminal justice arena, whereby the law protects the victim rather than the perpetrator. This Bill I expect, will be a simple amendment to the Firearms Act. Further, if the requirement to carry around pepper spray and non-lethal weapons will be done by permit, this process must be done quickly, instead of having to wait years for permit. ”
To the issue of our lockdown and the latest restrictions, Hosein said the PM has announced the lockdown in light of the growing number of Covid-19 infections and has stated it was based on Science, but it seems that we are under a crazy science experience.
“The PM’s own admission as to the source of his Covid-19 infection is still unknown and shows a collapse of contact tracing. Therefore, the PM must justify whether the sectors which are being locked down contributed to the spread of the virus and that this is not a haphazard exercise operating by vaps. Whereby you are putting thousands of citizens and businesses on the breadline without proper justification.”
“Further, I take serious issue with the PM announcement that he received legal advice that police officers can enter a private residence. This is totally unconstitutional. I must remind the PM when there was the Bayside incident last year, the police indicated that they had no power to enter private residence, the Minister of Health said that private property fell outside the Covid-19 Regulations. This Government has indicated its blatant intention to ignore the rule of law.
When asked to give his thought on SORT and its new head, Roger Alexander, Hosein said “It is too early to comment on this, I await to see the performance of Mr. Alexander.”
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