Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad was understandably livid on Monday. It wasn't often that he was forced to account for his action in public, and of all places, the Parliament House. After all, he had once dismissed the House as a mere rubber stamp. But that was after voters had booted him out of the august institution in 1969.

Indeed, this time he was compelled to explain himself against charges by Barisan Alternatif MPs that the first sitting of the 10th Parliament was unconstitutional. The meeting, he insisted, was legal because as caretaker prime minister he had the right to advise the Agong to convene the new Parliament.

Still, the government failed to satisfy the minimum 14 days required by the Constitution between the notice of meeting issued by the Agong and the convening of the new Parliament.

All this is perhaps a tad too technical. But why pledge allegiance to the Constitution when it is ignored by the powers-that-be whenever it suits them? Then again, it was Mahathir who also once remarked that the Constitution was amended so many times that it no longer worth the paper it was written on.

The mainstream media, not surprisingly, jumped to the Prime Minister's defence. New Straits Times took the lead with a scathing editorial on Wednesday, which accused Opposition members for "speaking mob language" and for acting much like "scoundrels". An opinion piece in the paper on the same day added that BA MPs were promoting the samseng (gangster) culture.

While the media waxes lyrical about the Opposition MPs' "antics", little was said about the "silent walkout" by their Barisan Nasional opponents. Indeed, after to hoopla on the first day, fewer than half turned up the next day, and most of these absentees MPs were from the government side.

And nothing about this would have been said in the mainstream media if not for the unspoken fear that the Opposition MPs, now with its increased strength, could overwhelm the BN camp. The days when BN could out-shout the Opposition, or walked out of the chambers to force an abrupt end to proceedings because of the lack of quorum, are over.

Indeed, BN can no longer call for a quorum count every time they stage a "walkout". In the previous Parliament, there were only 22 Opposition MPs - a few shy of the 26 needed for quorum. Now with 45 in its ranks, the BA MPs can continue parliamentary business, with or without the presence of those on government benches.

This "we're no longer in control" fear was reflected in a news analysis which appeared in NST also on Wednesday. It conceded that the attendance of Opposition MPs was impeccable. Thus, BN MPs were forewarned that despite the absence of heavyweights such as Lim Kit Siang and Karpal Singh, they should not expect an easy run this time. Their presence in Parliament, it lamented, was thus crucial.

But given the poor turn-out of BN backbenchers and Cabinet ministers this week, it appears that no one is listening. Clearly, old habits die hard.