Whether the special committee to oversee the Election Commission (EC) is led by members of the Pakatan coalition or otherwise should be the decision of Parliament, former Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz, said today.

NGOs calling for the committee to be headed by members of the Pakatan coalition, said Nazri, who was the minister in charge of parliamentary affairs, have no power to decide on the matter.

"Who should be the leader in the committee? We will allow Parliament to decide because its members are duly elected by the people.

NONE "We must allow Parliament to decide - not the NGOs to decide - because the NGOs are not elected by the people," Nazri told a press conference in Parliament after handing over duties to his successor, Shahidan Kassim ( on the left ).

Nazri also confirmed that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's announcement of the special committee to oversee the EC meant that the commission would be placed under the Parliament.

Last Saturday, national news agency Bernama reported Najib announcing that a bipartisan special committee would be formed to oversee the beleaguered EC, although he did not provide further details.

'BN MPs will be supportive of government'

Former electoral watchdog Mafrel chairperson Abdul Malek Hussein has called for the committee to be led by the opposition , so that it would not be dominated by BN MPs who would be supportive of the government and less likely to push through genuine reforms.

In his handover speech earlier, Nazri said he had been tasked by the cabinet to guide Shahidan during the transition period and advised his successor to consult the parliamentary staff if he needed help as they were very professional.

"I had thought I will only be (a minister in the Prime Minister's Department) but perhaps I did not perform well, so I was punished to remain in the position for another term.

"But when it was announced that I will be tourism minister, I still felt sad as I have to leave because Parliament has been my home for nine years," Nazri said.

He also quipped that Shahidan should not take heart that he was dropped as Perlis menteri besar in 2008, since that position only equalled to a deputy minister, whereas he had now been appointed a full minister.

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