'Let people judge': Fadillah reveals MOU terms

Deputy Prime Minister II Fadillah Yusof has revealed the content of the government's memorandum of understanding (MOU) on opposition allocation after Perikatan Nasional unanimously rejected the draft.

The government parliamentary chief whip described opposition leader Hamzah Zainudin's claim that the draft had potentially affected some provisions in the Federal Constitution as "baseless".

"With the disclosure of this MOU, the public can now judge for themselves that all the claims made by the opposition leader regarding this draft are completely baseless," Fadillah said in a statement today.

Citing reasons for the rejection, Hamzah yesterday said that there were four issues - the potential to affect the constitutional privileges of Malays and bumiputera; conditions that are contrary to cultural, moral, and religious principles; the potential for misinterpretation and abuse of power; and it is tantamount to a restriction of MPs' parliamentary privileges.

Fadillah released two versions of the draft MOUs.

One was meant to be signed between the government and individual PN parliamentarians, while the other was meant to be inked between the government and PN as a coalition and is binding on all its MPs.

Apart from that, the contents of both drafts were substantially the same.

In return for equal privileges in the lower house, parliamentary resources, and constituency funds, MPs must declare their assets within 14 days of signing the MOU and adhere to the “Seven Principles of Public Life”.

They also must avoid inciting hatred, discrimination, or violence and act with tolerance.

Other terms

Additionally, MPs must recognise that the Federal Constitution and parliamentary democracy are based on dignity and equality for all Malaysians and that human rights and freedoms should be upheld for everyone, regardless of race, religion, language, or culture.

Lawmakers were also expected to affirm that the Federal Constitution and democracy in Malaysia uphold the right to freedom and equal protection against discrimination or incitement.

The draft MOU also stressed the need for MPs to condemn hate speech and incitement against the royal institution and Malay rulers.

According to Fadillah, both drafts will be in effect from the signing date until the dissolution of the 15th Parliament or Dec 19, 2027, whichever comes first.

He noted that the MOUs did not include confidentiality clauses and were subject to the law.

“The MOUs will automatically be terminated if either party fails to fulfil its obligations.

“This applies to both the government and the opposition,” he added.

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