KUALA LUMPUR: Police have opened an investigation over a tweet by Lim Kit Siang that allegedly contained a statement that could threaten public order.

Bukit Aman CID director Comm Datuk Seri Abd Jalil Hassan said police had detected a tweet which read "Will the houses of the prime minister and ministers of malaysia be set on fire by angry protestors as happened in sri lanka last week?".

"A screenshot image of the tweet was also detected to have been transmitted through WhatsApp since it was uploaded on May 19, 2022.

"Investigations are being conducted by the Special Investigations Unit (D5), under Section 505 (c) of the Penal Code for issuing statements with intent to incite any group or race and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 for improper use of network facilities or network services," he said in a statement on Friday (May 20).

He advised the public not to make any speculations that could jeopardise the investigation.

"We also advised the public to be smart and prudent social media users.

"Do not use the platform to spread any information that could cause public intimidation and threaten the harmony of the country.

Firm action without compromise will be taken against any individual who deliberately threatens public order and safety," he said.

Lim, who is Iskandar Puteri MP published the statement on his blog dated May 19 with the title, "Can Malaysia learn from the lessons of Sri Lanka".

It was allegedly also posted on Twitter but checks revealed that the tweet has been taken down.

Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak on Thursday (May 19) posted a screenshot of the tweet and urged the police to arrest Lim for sedition.

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2022/05/21/police-begin-probe-into-kit-siang039s-tweet-on-sri-lanka-violence