During my time, emergency ordinances removed with due process: Najib
Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak said back when he was in power, his administration had followed all due process to remove emergency proclamations and ordinances.
This came after a day of confusion surrounding de facto Law Minister Takiyuddin Hassan's announcement yesterday that six emergency ordinances had been revoked, effective July 21....
Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak said back when he was in power, his administration had followed all due process to remove emergency proclamations and ordinances.
This came after a day of confusion surrounding de facto Law Minister Takiyuddin Hassan's announcement yesterday that six emergency ordinances had been revoked, effective July 21.
“If it is revoked, then it must follow the due process of law, meaning the cabinet advises the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the Agong consents to it and then it is gazetted. Then only it is complete, legally speaking.
“We have done this. In my time, the emergency ordinances we revoked followed this process.
“They have to be presented in both Houses,” Najib (above) said in a press conference at the Parliament today.
Earlier today, opposition MPs had urged Takiyuddin to answer whether the Agong had consented to the revocation of the ordinances, but the minister sidestepped the question, citing a technicality.
Back in 2011, Najib had tabled a motion in the Dewan Rakyat to lift three emergency proclamations that have been in effect for more than 40 years since they were enacted.
As such, in line with Article 150(7) of the Federal Constitution, the ordinances promulgated under the emergency proclamations lapsed six months after the proclamations ceased to be in effect.
In his press conference today, Najib said there are three pertinent questions related to yesterday’s announcement of the ordinances being revoked that need to be answered as soon as possible.
First of all, he questioned whether the due process of law was observed in the revocation of the emergency ordinances.
“Whatever revocation of ordinances must get the Agong’s consent and must be gazetted,” he said.
Najib also asked whether the revocation can be backdated because this could have significant implications on the legality of the actions taken by the authorities after July 21.
His third question was about the six ordinances that were supposedly revoked, which he said included the first ordinance promulgated under this emergency.
Najib said this could cause questions to arise about the legality and the legitimacy of this government after July 21, which is when the revocation of the ordinances supposedly came into effect.
“What happened yesterday was very confusing to the rakyat. We need to get an accurate, detailed and clear explanation,” said the former premier.
