Umno veep supports speaker's call for Parliament to reconvene

 

A senior Umno leader has voiced support for Dewan Rakyat Speaker Azalina Othman Said's proposals to facilitate the reconvening of Parliament now suspended under emergency laws.

Umno vice-president Mohamed Khaled Nordin said it wasn't the first time Azalina had made an urgent call for Parliament to reconvene amid the Covid-19 national public health crisis.

"I have never seen a more pressing and critical situation than now. I agree and support the proposals she made.

"The country is faced with a critical health crisis and an emergency on a scale that we have we never seen before. There is no sign that things will improve in the near future," he said in a statement.

"Unfortunately, Parliament that is supposed to be a platform for debate and bipartisan cooperation can be prevented from convening.

"This is a decision that not only tarnishes the practice of democracy but also places the entire country at risk," said Khaled.

Among others, Azalina in an open letter yesterday, expressed her frustration with the MPs’ inability to seek answers from the government outside of Parliament which was suspended under emergency laws which took effect on Jan 11 and are set to expire on Aug 1.

All lawmakers have so far been vaccinated against Covid-19 but Azalina proposed that all Parliament staff should also be vaccinated. Otherwise, the House sittings can be convened online, she proposed.

She also proposed bipartisan initiatives to ensure check and balance, fair allocation of constituency funds and utilising all MPs to communicate health information to the public.

However, her most prominent proposal was for the forging of a bipartisan “interim emergency government” and a specific ordinance to allow Parliament to reconvene without a motion of no-confidence being tabled.

"The government must stop facing any crisis in a way that sidelines democratic practices," stressed Khaled.

Separately, civil society groups focusing on democratic and institutional reforms also came forward in support of Azalina's proposal.

"Legislatures across the globe have adapted to new ways of working to continue oversight of their government’s Covid-19 response.

"Although these new measures remain works in progress, they tell us that even in these times of crisis, parliaments can and do balance the need to keep democracy functioning with the need to keep people safe," said the Seed Community for a Professional Parliament.

The movement comprises a network of individuals active in civil society organisations, think tanks and academia working towards a professional parliament that facilitates healthy policy competition between parties.

The group said Malaysia could also draw from the experiences of the UK Parliament's virtual sittings including on methods to amend the Standing Orders if and where deemed necessary.

To facilitate cross-party collaboration, apart from Azalina's suggestion for a unity government, the group also noted a separate proposal on a Confidence and Supply Agreement.

"We do not wish to debate the relative merits of these different options here.

"Suffice to say that it is time for the leaders of all parties to come together to agree on terms that free up Parliament to carry out its constitutionally mandated legislative, representational and oversight functions," they stressed.

The endorsing groups include think-tank Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (Ideas), Bersih, Pusat Komas, Engage, Reform and Bait Al-Amanah. - Mkini

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