PARLIAMENT Dewan Rakyat speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia today ruled that Deputy Defence Minister Abdul Rahim Bakri “did not confuse the House” by making an “assumption” that the Royal Malaysia Air Force (RMAF) has assumed that the MH370 turn-back was ordered by the control tower.

Abdul Rahim ( right ) on March 26 had said that the RMAF did not act to intercept the plane because it assumed the turn-back was ordered by the control tower.

He later claimed that the statement made in Parliament was just his own “assumption” about how RMAF perceived the situation.

“After hearing an explanation from the deputy minister, I have decided that he did not intend to confuse or mislead the House with his statement,” Pandikar said in Parliament today.

Pandikar said that Abdul Rahim had both written to him and also met him in the speaker’s chambers to clarify the matter.

Pandikar also did not accede to requests by opposition MPs that Abdul Rahim at least explain the matter and apologise in Parliament so that the record is set straight in the Hansard .

“At least the deputy minister should come back into the Parliament and explain this, otherwise the Hansard will only record his previous statement,” PKR’s Batu MP Tian Chua said.

But Pandikar said that his decision is final and it need not be debated further.

“As usual, if you are unhappy, you can move an independent motion,” he said.