By Adrian Lim
KUCHING, Mar 5: Santubong MP Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar pointed out that the changing of parliament session dates from March 9 to May 18 by speaker of the Dewan Rakyat Tan Sri Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof and Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin were in compliance with the rules of the Lower House.
Wan Junaidi, who was himself deputy speaker of the Lower House from 2008 to 2013, stated that the notice dated March 4 exceeded the 28-day minimum requirement of notice, and was consistent with Rule 11(2) of the Standing Orders of Dewan Rakyat.
The session would be the first meeting of the third year of the 14th Parliament.
“Under Rule 4(A), the leader and the deputy leader of the house are the leader and deputy leader of the government, for instance prime minister and deputy prime minister respectively.
“Accordingly, to me the notice given by the speaker dated March 4 is good and sufficient notice to vary the date determined by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah under Rule 11(1) of the Standing Orders of Dewan Rakyat.
Wan Junaidi was responding to a news article in Free Malaysia Today whereby GK Ganesan, a lawyer in a blog post said postponing the Dewan Rakyat sitting from March 9 to May 18 was against Standing Orders as the prime minister must comply with the notice period of 28 days as required under Order 11(3), and under those circumstances Muhyiddin could not invoke Order 11.
Ganesan observed that Muhyiddin had just taken office on March 1, eight days before the original Parliament sitting was scheduled to hold its first meeting.
As a result, he noted that Muhyiddin did not provide 28 days’ notice, therefore violating the Standing Orders.
“I think (what lawyer GK) Ganesan (said) is not right.
“Under Rule 11(1), the Yang di-Pertuan Agong fixed the place, date and time of the meeting of each session of Dewan Rakyat by proclamation,” said Wan Junaidi.
“But, under Rule 11(2) the leader or deputy leader of the House shall determine by giving 28 days notice the commencement of each session, dates on which the House shall meet in each session.”
He explained that Rule 11(2) was interpreted to give the right to the leader or deputy leader of the House to produce the calendar of the Dewan’s meeting each year in which the whole year’s calendar of the sessions given by the speaker was on March 4.
In the meantime, Wan Junaidi stressed that the decision of the speaker on the point of interpretation of the Rule of the House, subject only to a substantive motion moves for that purpose, under Rule 99 is final.
Furthermore, he asserted that the regulation of the internal matters of the House was protected by Article 62 of the Federal Constitution.—DayakDaily
