CYBERJAYA: Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil today denies that the government did not engage the opposition about the regulatory framework for Internet and social media messaging service providers.
Fahmi said the government had conducted three engagement sessions before announcing the licensing requirement.
"(The allegation) is incorrect because we held at least three discussions, and I understand that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission will conduct another engagement session soon.
"The MCMC will announce this next week," he said after the launch of Sidang Anak Muda K2K.
Yesterday, Perikatan Nasional's Tasik Gelugor member of parliament Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan urged the government to engage the coalition and provide a better explanation to stakeholders before implementing licensing for social media companies.
Fahmi said the government welcomed views from all parties, including the opposition.
"However, the most important thing is the situation where these social media platforms make huge profits through advertising.
"The revenue generated from advertisements in Malaysia is substantial. We were informed by the media that certain platforms are reaping big profits from their (media) advertising expenditure.
"So this process (licensing) is to ensure justice for the people and media.
"We do not want these companies to make big profits without being held accountable to the country, its people and the media."