Humayun Kabir | Oct 28, 09 6:42pm | Malaysiakini
Barisan Nasional has been accused of orchestrating an elaborate plan to prevent ousted Pakatan Rakyat speaker V Sivakumar from exercising his duties at the state assembly sitting today.
Sivakumar, who levelled the charge at a press conference in Ipoh, said this was evident when a large group of police personnel stopped him at the car park of the state secretariat building, where the legislative assembly is located.
He said their motive was to confiscate the speaker’s robe and songkok that he was wearing.
“It was a BN conspiracy to grab the official robe from me,” he claimed, saying the police choked him in the ensuing struggle as he attempted to hold on to it. Teja state assemblyperson Chang Ming Kai said he went to Sivakumar’s assistance, but was in turn was stopped by police personnel.
“One of them grabbed me and pulled me to the ground (in the melee),” Chang said.
At a press conference later at state DAP headquarters, ousted Pakatan menteri besar Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin provided more details, saying he had witnessed the incident.
“During the struggle with the police, Sivakumar managed to hang on to the collar of the speaker’s robe. There was a threat to the life of the speaker,” Nizar claimed.
Sivakumar, who lost the battle – first for the songkok and then for the robe – did manage to save the collar which he displayed to the media.
Nizar said there is video footage of the assault on Sivakumar and that legal action is being considered against the police.
As a result of police intervention, the Pakatan delegation’s attendance at the sitting was delayed. By the time they entered the assembly, BN speaker R Ganesan had ordered a recess of an hour.
Chronology of events
This chain of events was reconstructed from details provided at the press conference.
Sivakumar was wearing the robe when he started out with the Pakatan delegation from DAP headquarters for the 10am sitting.
After passing through three barriers and two checkpoints, he lost the songkok to a police officer who snatched it off his head. At the time, Sivakumar was about to enter the lift at the basement, to go to the chamber on the second floor.
Enraged, the Pakatan team left the building and returned to the main road where they told the media about what had happened.
They also said the police had tried to detain Sivakumar under Section 111 of the Criminal Procedure Code to record a witness statement in relation to police reports lodged against him earlier.
Nizar said he grabbed the cap of a police officer in anger and refused to give it back to him, asking instead: “How do you feel when your official cap is unlawfully (snatched)? That is how Sivakumar felt (about losing the songkok).”
After arguing for five minutes with the police, the Pakatan team returned to the state secretariat where other police personnel confronted Sivakumar. This is when they tried to get the robe off him.
Again, Sivakumar returned to the main road to brief the waiting media about the ‘assault” on him. However, realising that any assemblyperson who fails to attend two sittings could lose his seat, he made his way to the assembly.
Police reports lodged
Sivakumar later lodged two police reports – one was about the alleged assault by police personnel and the other was to disclaim knowledge of a fake notice that he is accused of circulating.
The document states that a state assembly sitting would be convened at the Heritage Hotel in Ipoh today to table the 2010 budget, as well as a motion by Nizar, the Pasir Panjang representative, to dissolve the assembly.
It said Nizar would seek the Perak sultan’s consent to dissolve the assembly and call for fresh state elections, at an audience with the ruler at Istana Kinta at 3pm today.
According to Bernama, Sivakumar claimed that he is a victim of dirty politics. He denied having issued any such notice, which carries the letterhead of the speaker’s office and is dated Oct 23, 2009.
Swift state budget
Meanwhile, Nizar also chided the BN government for passing of the 2010 state budget within an hour.
The people-friendly budget when tabled by Menteri Besar Zambry Abdul Kadir was passed in a very swift manner with a show of BN hands as the Pakatan side did not participate in the budget debate.
“They shovelled and bulldozed the state budget within a hour as they fear that we might jeopardise their 2010 budget,” said Nizar.
“Normally it will take about 45 days for the federal budget to be passed in Parliament but here in Perak we have the shortest time for the passage of the budget,” he reasoned.
“I believe this is the fastest budget that was passed in the state’s history,” he said.
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Double trouble in Perak Written by Chan Kok Leong Wednesday, 28 October 2009 19:31 The Edge Malaysia
IPOH: After the almost six-hour fiasco of May 7, not many journalists had expected a quick and speedy resolution to Perak’s second or third legislative assembly (DUN) sitting of the year.
But, despite the twin sittings today, complete with two Speakers, Menteris Besar, sets of assemblymen and even opening prayers, there were fewer casualties.
There was also no repeat of scuffling within the legislative assembly hall or outside the state government office.
The only casualties were Pakatan Rakyat appointed Speaker V Sivakumar who was unceremoniously and literally stripped off his robes inside the state office. Sivakumar’s DAP compatriot Nga Kor Ming experienced the same.
Nga alleged that police within the hall had also “literally grabbed him by the genitals”.
Barely 24 hours ahead of the meeting, the authorities and Barisan Nasional appointed Speaker Datuk R Ganesan had taken the necessary precautions (See Perak state assembly braces for another storm).
Despite the relative calm and ease of movement outside the perimeters of the state government office, security going into the legislative hall was tighter than Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
Journalists and photographers, who began entering the hall at 9.30am, were frisked and individually scanned before getting their bags searched thoroughly.
In contrast, some police personnel, whose total presence is estimated to number above 300, were seen enjoying their roti canai, along with two elderly joggers at the only mamak restaurant across from the state office. Incidentally, the DAP Perak office is housed above the restaurant.
Media personnel, invited guests and government officers were the first group scheduled by Ganesan to enter the hall at 9.30am. Before the last reporter entered the hall, almost 100 guests and officers were already seated.
So too were MB Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir and his backbenchers, who formed the second group of people allowed into the hall. BN-friendly independents Osman Mohd Jailu (Changkat Jering), Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi (Behrang) and Hee Yit Foong (Jelapang) were also “early”.
Ganesan was also in the Speaker’s seat surrounded by some 15 sergeants-in-arms.
The bell signalling the commencement of the sitting promptly rang at 10am and Ganesan began the sitting by expressing the DUN’s condolences over the Kampar bridge tragedy, observing a minute’s silence and reminding the representatives of the prohibitions he had put in place a day earlier.
Representatives were prohibited from taking videos, using theirs phones, laptops or email during the sitting. Interestingly, during the entire proceeding, Datuk Mohd Khusairi Abdul Talib (Slim-BN) was happily banging away at his laptop.
Ganesan then proceeded by asking Zambry to deliver the Perak Budget 2010 speech. Without fuss nor debate and within 20 minutes, the budget had passed the second reading.
The Speaker’s timetable worked to the ruling government’s advantage as it was another 25 minutes later before the sounds of a commotion announcing the arrival of Pakatan Rakyat’s representatives were heard.
Ganesan promptly adjourned the sitting till 11.20am as photographers rushed to the entrance. Amid the shouting and some shoving, the “other” MB Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin and his backbenchers entered the hall with Thomas Su (Pasir Pinji) chanting, “Speaker haram! Bodyguard banyak!”
Looking amused, the BN backbenchers kept their peace while officials and guests laughed off the spectacle.
It was another 15 minutes before Sivakumar took his seat on the opposition side of the hall and a second doa was read out.
In the midst, Chang Lih Kang (Teja-PKR) used the microphone to bellow: “Speaker haram! Sila keluar dewan!”.
After the commotion, the PR side of the sitting passed three motions — to suspend all national service camps or outdoor programmes, to recognise the Auditor-General’s report on Perak and to appoint PKR state chief Osman Abdul Rahman as a senator.
At 11.20am, Ganesan reconvened his sitting and managed to pass Perak’s 2010 Budget amid continuous derision from PR representatives.
Despite their attempts at distracting him, Ganesan kept his eye on the ball and his script. He was so focused that at one point, the former Sungkai representative could not hear Zambry’s attempts to read his script.
For a brief moment, both spoke into the microphone. But by that time it did not matter, as the sitting was rendered academic — BN’s sitting will most likely be the one recognised.
At that point, not only were PR representatives treating the BN sitting as a non-event but guests and government officers alike were seen walking and talking on their phones at will. Legislative decorum and respect appeared to have abandoned the hall.
Shortly after BN backbenchers had passed their budget, Sivakumar adjourned his sitting and PR assemblypersons left the hall for their press conference.
During the press conference, Sivakumar told the press he had been roughed up as the police tore off his robes.
“Some 20 policemen, some in uniform and others in plainclothes, grabbed me and seized the Speaker’s robe from me. In the process, I was choked and the robe was torn,” said the Tronoh assemblyman in a press conference at the DUN library.
At another press conference at 1.30pm, Nizar told reporters he would also file police reports for assault, excessive police force and a poison pen letter.
BN adjourned their sitting at around 1pm.
During BN’s press conference, a beaming Zambry said he was pleased with today’s sitting.
“Despite the chaotic environment, the BN reps behaved well. BN always follows the rules and I wish to congratulate our representatives for maintaining their decorum,” said Zambry during the press conference in his office.
Commenting on his counterparts from PR, Zambry said they were “quite outah (poor standard)” and were only looking to “dramatise” the event.
“They were here to provoke us into acting against them and then using it to gain public sympathy.”
By 3pm, with the actors off the stage, things have returned to normal.
But there is no doubt in Perak, at least, that the circus has not left town yet.