Opportune time to implement reforms in Malaysian parliament - Madius
31 Aug 2021
By Ilona Andrew
KOTA KINABALU: Now is opportune to implement comprehensive reforms in the Malaysian parliament, said WISDOM Foundation executive chairperson Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau.
He said that this should be the newly-appointed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri’s Malaysia Day gift to the people.
“The current political situation in the country wherein the ruling party is supported only by a very slim majority is an opportune time to undertake a comprehensive reform such that the ruling party receives the much-needed confidence and at the same time, ensuring effective check and balance is in place and the integrity of future lawmakers,” he said in a statement on Tuesday.
He suggested that the government and opposition lawmakers should sign a confidence and supply agreement (CSA) that would include key changes to the Standing Orders.
The UPKO president opined that this could ‘free’ Ismail from the questions of legitimacy that had ‘haunted’ his predecessor, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin during the latter’s administration.
“This includes prioritising motions of no-confidence over Government’s business upon demand of 20 per cent of MPs and transfer the vast agenda-setting power from the hand of PM and the Speaker to the House Committee.
“Ideally, Speaker and Deputy Speakers should all be elected MPs whose party membership is suspended while in office,” the Tuaran MP explained.
While fundamental changes may take time, Madius pointed out that parliamentary reform can also begin with the low hanging fruits such as amending the Standing Orders to introduce online and hybrid meetings.
He said that this will allow the House to meet without interruption even in the event of MPs and parliamentary staff testing positive for Covid-19.
“A maximum number of Parliamentary Special Select Committees (PSSCs) have to be set up such that each and every ministerial portfolio will have a PSSC to match and provide the much-needed oversight,” he added.
Madius said that the Prime Minister must take this opportunity to expand both the number of PSSCs and the number of MPs per PSSC (from the current size of seven) to ensure all non-Minister MPs who want to serve all year long get to do so.
“Of the 13 proposed PSSCs, PSCC for Federalism and Decentralisation must be given top priority as it would address the top-heavy, one-size-fits-all, over-centralised structure of our governmental system that makes our federalism hollow and obstructs the realisation of the federation promised by the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63),” he said.
Madius had also supported Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said’s suggestion to introduce recall election laws.
“We do not support the standard Anti-Hopping Law (AHL) which only strengthens party leaders - instead of voters - vis-à-vis MPs.
“As an unintended consequence, MPs may become parrots of their party leaders who can threaten MPs with expulsion from the party – one definition of party hopping under AHLs - and the subsequent vacating of their seats,” he said.
Commentaires