'Agong didn't give date' not an excuse to dither on Parliament - Mat Hasan
Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan said the government should not use the fact that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong did not provide a fixed date to delay the reopening of Parliament.
This was following the Conference of Rulers meeting yesterday which backed the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's call for Parliament to be reconvened "as soon as possible".
Mohamad said the government's insistence that Parliament will only reconvene in September and October in accordance with its Covid-19 National Recovery Plan...
Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan said the government should not use the fact that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong did not provide a fixed date to delay the reopening of Parliament.
This was following the Conference of Rulers meeting yesterday which backed the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's call for Parliament to be reconvened "as soon as possible".
Mohamad said the government's insistence that Parliament will only reconvene in September and October in accordance with its Covid-19 National Recovery Plan was unacceptable as they come with strings attached.
The government has set conditions where the average new daily Covid-19 cases must fall under 2,000 cases and the vaccination rate must reach 40 percent for Parliament to reconvene.
It also said that there must be "sufficient" Intensive Care Unit (ICU) bed capacity but did not provide a definition.
"The government should immediately call for Parliament (into session). Don't dither, based on the excuse that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong did not state which month Parliament should reconvene.
"The government's timeline that Parliament can reconvene in September or October under the National Recovery Plan is not guaranteed as it is subject to various conditions.
"The reconvening of Parliament does not need to be subject to recovery phases and conditions. It is the place where all recovery efforts should be debated and discussed," Mohamad said in a statement.
He added that trying to politicise the ruler's decree would not aid in the country's recovery.
"Any excuse to delay the reopening of Parliament is not only anti-democratic but an affront to the honour and wisdom of the royal institution, which is independent and above politics," he said.
Parliament has been suspended since the state of emergency was imposed on Jan 11.
The government had argued that the emergency was needed to combat the Covid-19 pandemic but critics claimed it was to cling on to power amid an uncertain majority.
The pandemic has deteriorated following the implementation of the emergency.
The average new Covid-19 cases in the last seven days stood at 5,591 compared with 3,206 in the first seven days when the emergency was implemented.
Covid-19 deaths have also skyrocketed from 555 to 4,142 in the same period.
The Conference of Rulers yesterday said the emergency, which expires in August, should not be extended.
The rulers are of the position that the check-and-balance mechanism among the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary should be respected, particularly on the country’s finances.
The government had in March used its emergency powers to grant itself the ability to tap the consolidated fund and approve supplementary budgets without going through Parliament.
The Conference of Rulers, through their Keeper of the Rulers' Seal Syed Danial Syed Ahmad, said they had a duty to curb any abuse of power.
“It is the duty of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and the state rulers to balance the various demands to ensure there is justice and curb the real possibility or perception that there was an abuse of power,” Syed Danial said.
Are you sure you want to delete this comment?
This action cannot be undone.