NIK NAZMI CASE On the alleged khalwat case involving Nik Nazmi, my position is clear: politicians are human beings. They do not surrender their right to privacy when they enter politics. Nik Nazmi has acknowledged his detention and denied any improper conduct. An arrest is not a conviction, and being alone with someone does not establish a sexual relationship. People should stop filling the gaps with their own imagination. I have consistently opposed moral policing and the intrusion of religious authorities into people’s private lives. My principle does not change according to someone’s party, religion or whether I agree with their politics. Being in PBM does not prevent me from defending someone in Bersama. Rights belong to everyone. Unless there is coercion, abuse, exploitation, misuse of public resources or actual harm, what adults do in private should be their business. Any personal obligations to a spouse or family are theirs to address. The public is not entitled to turn their pain into entertainment. Some say, “He should have known better. He has enemies. There are cameras and spies everywhere.” But why should we accept a society where people must live in fear of being watched, exposed and publicly humiliated? Political vulnerability does not make an invasion of privacy acceptable. Nor does an approaching election erase someone’s dignity. I am not claiming to know what happened behind closed doors. Neither do you. That is precisely why speculation and moral grandstanding should stop. We should scrutinise politicians fiercely over corruption, abuse of power, public spending, their policies and their treatment of the people. Public accountability matters. So does knowing where public authority should end. I want a government that protects our rights, respects our freedom of conscience and delivers justice. I do not want a government policing our private lives in the name of religion. Mind your own business is sometimes exactly the advice society needs to hear. We elect politicians to govern the country. We do not own their private lives. SITI KASIM