There is a chorus of MCA, Gerakan and MIC Ministers threatening to resign from the Cabinet over Hadi’s hudud private member’s motion which was given priority in Parliament on Thursaday as a result of the Minister’s motion moved by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Azalina Othman Said and seconded by the Deputy Works Minister, Datuk Rosnah Abdul Raashid Shirlin.
This chorus was started by the MCA President and Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai and followed up by the Gerakan President and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Mah Siew Keong, MIC President and Health Minister Datuk S. Subramaniam, MCA Deputy President and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Wee Ka Siong.
Liow has said that he will meet Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to convey MCA members’ concerns over Hadi’s private member’s bill.
What Liow should do is to meet the Prime Minister on a three-point agenda and inform the Malaysian public the outcome of his meeting with Najib.
The three-point agenda are:
Firstly, on the Cabinet at its meeting on May 20, 2016 which decided against Hadi’s private member’s bill motion, and why Azalina moved the Ministerial motion after lunch in Parliament on Thursday giving priority to Hadi’s motion which was contrary to this Cabinet decision as well as the consensus of all the Barisan Nasional leaders at a meeting in March 2015.
Secondly, Najib’s statement on Friday night after the UMNO Supreme Council meeting that it was merely a misunderstanding to regard Hadi’s private member’s bill was on hudud, which is in stark contrast to the MCA, Gerakan and MIC positions.
Liow described Hadi’s bill as unconstitutional while his deputy president, Wee rejected claims that Hadi’s bill “is not a hudud bill”, insisting that Hadi’s bill will lead to hudud and encroaches on the civil legal system.
Was the Prime Minister right in claiming that Hadi’s bill was not on “hudud” or were the Ministers who threaten resignation right in declaring that Hadi’s bill will lead to hudud?
Thirdly, restore the status quo ante before Azalina abused her powers in moving a Minister’s motion to give priority to Hadi’s private member’s bill motion by sacking Azalina as Minister and Rosnah as Deputy Minister and Cabinet repudiation of the Ministerial motion by the Azalina and Rosnah on Thursday.
Hadi’s hudud private bill member motion would lapse in the October meeting of Parliament unless there is another Ministerial motion to give it priority for parliamentary debate and vote ahead of government official business.
The taking of these three measures, in particular the sacking of Azalina and Rosnah from the Cabinet, would ensure that there would be no repetition of the Thursday fiasco in Parliament.
It is no use Liow and others threatening resignation from the Cabinet at the end of the year if Hadi’s bill is passed, if Liow and other Ministers are not prepared to restore the status quo ante with the sacking of Azalina and Rosnah from the Cabinet.
(Speech at the DAP ceramah in Sekinchan on Sunday, 29th May 2016 at 8.30 pm)