MP Tajuddin let off with stern warning

Tajuddin Abdul Rahman (BN-Pasir Salak) has escaped referral to the parliamentary powerful rights and privileges committee for threatening fellow-MP M Kulasegaran (DAP-Ipoh Barat).

Instead of holding an inquiry as asked, speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia (left) issued a stern warning to Tajuddin following separately meetings with the feuding MPs yesterday morning.

"Pasir Salak (referring to Tajuddin), do not accost other MPs in the House," he said when dishing out the warning today.

He also took the opportunity to remind other parliamentarians to watch their language when debating.

"Please do not offend your fellow-MPs," he stressed.

Last Thursday, Kulasegaran had claimed to have been approached by Tajuddin at the Parliament lobby and accused of tarnishing the latter’s "good name" in a blog posting

When told either make a police report or to take legal action, Tajuddin reportedly replied: "I will punch you and send people to your area to beat you up!"

The Ipoh Barat MP sought an inquiry into the threat, but Tajuddin ignored the speaker's instruction to retract his remarks.

Following today’s warning, Kulasegaran told reporters at the Parliament lobby that he is relieved that the matter has been resolved.

"But I feel intimidated that he (Tajuddin) may really carry out what he had (threatened to do)," Kula said.

“I will lodge a police report against Tajuddin tomorrow unless the statement is retracted and an apology is issued.”

He went on to say that the Pasir Salak MP is a liability to Barisan Nasional and hopes that this will be a lesson to all MPs to act in a civil manner.

‘Speaker unfair’

In an immediate response, Tajuddin said he does not accept the warning and that he intends to raise the matter with Pandikar Amin.

“I have done nothing wrong in the House to deserve censure. I did not threaten him (Kulasegaran), I only warned him not to be a mulut celupar (a loose cannon)," he claimed.

"Why give me a stern warning? You think am a small boy? No, I don't accept this.”

He questioned the speaker’s decision on the ground that the issue was irrelevant and a waste of the House's time.

"(When I met) the speaker (yesterday) .... he did not inform me that I would be given a warning...it is unfair. I asked why (he had to) entertain this kind of people (Kulasegaran).

"Just because that small boy (Kulasegaran) made a complaint, it was entertained. The speaker has to be balanced and be fair.

“Who are the people who always undermine the speaker, who insult him and call him a dictator ? Who? It's the DAP gang. Its Lim Kit Siang, Karpal Singh and Gobind Singh. (So) why not warn them instead?"

Kit Siang, the Ipoh Timor MP, said such a stern warning has never been issued in the House in the last 40 years that he has been a parliamentarian.

However, MPs have been occasionally suspended or referred to the rights and privileges committee for their alleged transgressions.

Tajuddin challenged

Tajuddin was was later ticked off for allegations he made against Lim Guan Eng (DAP-Bagan) and Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin (PAS-Bukit Gantang) in the House last week.

At a separate press conference in the Parliament lobby, the two said they are offended that Tajuddin had made detrimental remarks against them when they were not in the House and were therefore unable to rebut him.

Tajuddin had reportedly claimed that Nizar (right) is involved in the

land-and-sex scam and with selling sand to Singapore, and accused Guan Eng of selling the country's secrets to Singapore and Hong Kong.

"This is a serious allegation and I feel victimised as I was not there to defend myself. These are all baseless allegations, as there is no evidence against me," Nizar explained.

Guan Eng claimed that the statement could have serious consequences because it could be seen as insulting Singapore and Hong Kong, hence affecting diplomatic ties.

Both challenged Tajuddin to repeat his statement outside the House, so that they can pursue action against him.