Bersatu deputy president says PM not hiding from Parliament, confident of majority
Former Perak menteri besar Ahmad Faizal Azumu has denied that Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has postponed Monday's sitting of Parliament due to fears over his government's stability, saying he is confident that his party president has majority support in Dewan Rakyat.
The Bersatu deputy president told news portal FMT that such claims were baseless and that along with other Bersatu and PN MPs, he was fully prepared to face the Dewan Rakyat when it reconvenes...
Former Perak menteri besar Ahmad Faizal Azumu has denied that Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has postponed Monday's sitting of Parliament due to fears over his government's stability, saying he is confident that his party president has majority support in Dewan Rakyat.
The Bersatu deputy president told news portal FMT that such claims were baseless and that along with other Bersatu and PN MPs, he was fully prepared to face the Dewan Rakyat when it reconvenes.
“We are very confident that majority support will be retained to enable the government to continue functioning while giving focus to the rakyat’s welfare.
“The question of avoiding the sitting because of concerns that the government may fall does not arise at all,” Faizal (above) was reported as saying, adding that the government had the requisite support to stay in power.
Yesterday, a letter informing MPs of Parliament being postponed said the move was in line with advice from Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah and that the Health Ministry had found Parliament to be a Covid-19 risk locality.
The postponement comes amid what critics claim to be a constitutional crisis between the federal government and the monarchy.
On Thursday, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong gave the government a royal rebuke, accusing de facto law minister Takiyuddin Hassan of misleading the Dewan Rakyat by saying that emergency ordinances had been revoked - despite not receiving royal consent.
The Prime Minister's Office, in response, defended its decision, saying they had acted within the Federal Constitution, which also stated that the king must follow the cabinet's advice.
Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim wants to move a motion of no-confidence against Muhyiddin following the debacle while there are also motions to censure Takiyuddin.
Faizal, who is Tambun MP, repeated the claim that the decision to postpone the Dewan Rakyat sitting was based on Noor Hisham's advice.
“How is it possible that a Health Ministry professional would act by giving advice based on political considerations?
“As MPs, we must put the safety of the public as the main priority. Even though we have been vaccinated, we are not immune and can still carry the virus without us knowing,” he added.
Pakatan Harapan has indicated that its MPs may still head to Parliament on Monday despite the sitting being postponed to a different day.
In a statement released just before news broke that Muhyiddin had postponed Monday's sitting, the Harapan presidential council said nothing could stop MPs from fulfilling their duties.
"No matter what happens, MPs can't be stopped from attending Parliament on Monday to fulfil their duties and responsibilities to the people and country, and fulfil our oaths to defend the Federal Constitution," the statement read.
It was signed by PKR president Anwar, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng.
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