Lim Kit Siang

2020 has been shameful year for Malaysian Parliament as it repeatedly put the clock of parliamentary scrutiny of the Executive back instead of going forward like other Commonwealth Parliaments in parliamentary reforms

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The year 2020 has proved to be a shameful year for the Malaysian Parliament as it repeatedly put the clock of parliamentary scrutiny of the Executive back instead of going forwards like other Commonwealth Parliaments in parliamentary reforms.

Yesterday alone, there were four incidents which should make responsible and reform-minded Parliamentarians hold their heads in shame.

There was firstly the alleged miscount in the division voting on Monday during the committee stage of the 2021 Budget debate, where Tasek Gelugor MP, Shahbudin Yahya, acting as teller for Block C, was alleged to have mistakenly marked Nazri Abdul Aziz (BN-Padang Rengas) as being in support, when he was absent.

There was no miscount. Shahbudin had simply disregarded the responsibility and trust vested on him as a teller in division voting in Parliament as provided in Standing Orders 47(1) which reads:

“When a division has been ordered, the Tellers shall ask each member separately how he desires to vote, and the Setiausaha shall enter on the Votes and Proceedings a record of each member’s vote and of the members who abstained from voting.”

If Shahbudin had carried out his duties as teller to “ask each member separately how he desire to vote”, he would could not have marked Nazri as having voted in support, as Nazri was not in the House.

Shahbudin was not truthful in his clarification to the House and he should be suspended as MP for his dishonesty to Parliament.

Secondly, the Deputy Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister, Willie Mongin made an obscene gesture in the Dewan Rakyat, showing his middle finger to the Opposition MPs, and he had subsequently compounded his unparliamentary conduct by dishonestly denying that he had shown an indecent gesture.

The video recording of the parliamentary proceeding is proof that Willie Mongin had shown the indecent gesture.

Willie should be suspended as Deputy Minister and MP for his unparliamentary conduct.

Thirdly, the Minister for Plantation Industries and Commodities, Khairuddin Aman Razali, was guilty of unprecedented parliamentary irresponsibility when he did not personally reply in the debate on his Ministry’s allocation in the 2021 Budget although he was in Parliament, but came in to the Parliament Chamber to vote when divisional voting was called on his Ministry’s allocation.

This is kakistocracy at its worst – where the Minister dared not face the MPs to answer criticisms about his Ministry but only to vote.

Fourthly, the reply by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Takiyuddin Hassan, that the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia’s (Suhakam) 2019 annual report will not be tabled for debate in Parliament this year, although history was made last year when for the first time in 19 years, the Suhakam annual report was debated in Parliament on Dec. 5, 2019.

On October 27, 1977, when winding up a motion asking Parliament to ratify the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights 1966, I proposed the setting up of a Human Rights Commission in Malaysia.

It has taken over two decades for Malaysia to set up the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam). Almost another two decades have to elapse before Suhakam’s annual report was debated in Parliament last December.

Now, we are back to square one and we have regressed to ignoring the Suhakam report as in the previous Barisan Nasional time.

In one fell swoop, Takiyuddin was rendered null and void the opening paragragh of the Suhakam Chairman, Tan Sri Othman Hashim in his message for the 2019 Suhakam annual report, which states:

“The year 2019 was a special year for SUHAKAM, as SUHKAM celebrated its 20th Anniversary on 9th September and saw the debate of its annual report in Parliament for the first time, an important milestone for SUHKAM.”

It was a “special year” for “an important milestone” but for one year only!

I urge the Muhyiddin Cabinet to reverse Takiyuddin’s decision and resolve that parliamentary debate of the Suhakam annual report should be held every year, and that Malaysia should be moving forwards and not backwards in the human rights struggle of mankind.

Parliament has a new Speaker whose background had given hope that under his guidance and leadership, the Malaysian Parliament will finally catch up with other Commonwealth Parliaments in ushering in parliamentary reforms and innovations, but this seems to be misplaced hopes and aspirations.

In the mid-nineties, we led the world in conceptualising a MultiMedia Super Corridor but more than two decades later, while other countries are forging ahead with virtual parliamentary proceedings, we can only find all sorts of excuses to explain why Malaysia cannot have a virtual Parliament.

Is the Malaysian Parliament going forwards or backwards?

(Media Statement by DAP MP for Iskandar Puteri Lim Kit Siang in Parliament on Wednesday, 2nd December 2020)


2020 adalah satu tahun yang amat memalukan untuk Parlimen Malaysia yang telah membazirkan sebegitu banyak masa untuk hal-hal remeh, dan bukannya terus maju ke arah reformasi parlimen seperti yang berlaku di parlimen-parlimen di negara Komanwel yang lain

2020 adalah satu tahun yang amat memalukan untuk Parlimen Malaysia yang telah membazirkan sebegitu banyak masa untuk hal-hal remeh, dan bukannya terus maju ke arah reformasi parlimen seperti yang berlaku di parlimen-parlimen di negara Komanwel yang lain.

Semalam sahaja, terdapat empat insiden yang sepatutnya membawa malu kepada mana-mana Ahli Parlimen yang bertanggungjawab dan mahukan reformasi.

Pertamanya, berkenaan tuduhan salah pengiraan undi belah bahagian Belanjawan 2021 untuk Kementerian Kewangan yang berlangsung pada hari Isnin lalu, di mana Ahli Parlimen Tasek Gelugor, Shahbudin Yahya yang bertindak sebagai penghitung undi belah bahagian bagi Blok C, didakwa telah secara tidak sengaja menandakan Ahli Parlimen Padang Rengas, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz sebagai bersetuju dalam senarai undi, sedangkan beliau tidak hadir semasa pengundian dibuat.

Tidak timbul soal salah kira sebenarnya. Shahbudin sebenarnya telah mengabaikan tanggungjawab dan amanah yang diberikan kepadanya sebagai penghitung undi dalam pengiraan undi belah bahagian di Parlimen seperti yang diperuntukkan dalam Peraturan Mesyuarat 47 (1) yang berbunyi:

“Apabila belah bahagian telah diperintahkan, maka Penghitung undi hendaklah bertanya pada tiap-tiap ahli pihak mana hendak diundinya. Setiausaha hendaklah memasukkan undi masing-masing ahli itu dan nama ahli-ahli yang tidak mengundi dalam buku Undi-undi dan Perjalanan Mesyuarat.”

Sekiranya Shahbudin menjalankan tugasnya sebagai penghitung undi dengan “bertanya pada tiap-tiap ahli pihak mana hendak diundinya”, sudah tentu beliau tidak akan menandakan nama Nazri sebagai menyokong, kerana mantan Menteri itu tidak berada di dalam Dewan Rakyat ketika pengiraan undi dijalankan.

Shahbudin berlaku tidak jujur dalam penjelasannya kepada Dewan Rakyat, justeru beliau harus digantung tugas sebagai Ahli Parlimen kerana ketidakjujurannya kepada Parlimen.

Kedua, Timbalan Menteri Perusahaan Perladangan dan Komoditi, Willie Mongin membuat isyarat tidak senonoh kepada Dewan Rakyat, menunjukkan jari tengahnya kepada Ahli Parlimen Pembangkang, dan kemudiannya menafikan dengan tidak jujur bahawa beliau telah menunjukkan sikap tidak senonoh seumpama itu.

Rakaman video prosiding Parlimen menjadi bukti bahawa Willie Mongin telah menunjukkan sikap tidak senonoh.

Willie harus digantung tugas sebagai Timbalan Menteri dan Ahli Parlimen kerana tindakannya itu.

Ketiga, tindakan tidak bertanggungjawab Menteri Perusahaan Perladangan dan Komoditi, Khairuddin Aman Razali yang tidak menggulung sendiri perbahasan berkaitan peruntukan kementeriannya dalam Belanjawan 2021 walaupun beliau berada di Parlimen. Beliau hanya muncul di Dewan semasa sesi undi belah bahagi dijalankan untuk memastikan kelulusan peruntukan untuk Kementeriannya.

Inilah contoh terburuk kakistokrasi — di mana seorang Menteri tidak berani bertentang mata dengan Ahli Parlimen untuk menjawab kritikan terhadap Kementeriannya.

Keempat, jawapan Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri, Takiyuddin Hassan, bahawa laporan tahunan Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia Malaysia (Suhakam) 2019 tidak akan dibentangkan di Parlimen tahun ini, meskipun sejarah telah tercipta pada tahun lalu apabila laporan tahunan Suhakam julung kalinya dibahaskan di Parlimen pada 5 Disember 2019.

Pada 27 Oktober 1977, ketika menggulung perbahasan usul untuk memohon Parlimen meratifikasi Perjanjian Antarabangsa Hak Sivil dan Politik 1966, saya mencadangkan penubuhan Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia di Malaysia.

Dua dekad telah berlalu sejak Malaysia menubuhkan Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia (Suhakam). Kita mungkin perlu menunggu dua dekad lagi untuk melihat laporan Suhakam dibentangkan sekali lagi di Parlimen.

Kini, kita kembali ke titik mula dengan mengabaikan laporan Suhakam seperti yang berlaku semasa zaman pentadbiran Barisan Nasional.

Takiyuddin ternyata memadamkan sinar kegembiraan Pengerusi Suhakam, Tan Sri Othman Hashim yang dalam pembukaan perutusannya untuk laporan tahunan Suhakam 2019, menyatakan:

“Tahun 2019 adalah tahun istimewa untuk SUHAKAM, kerana SUHAKAM menyambut ulang tahunnya yang ke-20 pada 9 September dan menyaksikan perbahasan laporan tahunannya dibahaskan di Parlimen untuk julung-julung kalinya, satu peristiwa penting bagi SUHAKAM.”

Kini, “tahun istimewa” untuk “peristiwa penting” terhenti setakat itu sahaja!

Saya mendesak Kabinet Muhyiddin untuk menarik balik keputusan Takiyuddin dan menetapkan bahawa laporan tahunan Suhakam harus dibahaskan di Parlimen setiap tahun, sekaligus menegaskan bahawa Malaysia akan tetap komited dalam perjuangan hak asasi manusia.

Parlimen mempunyai Yang di Pertua yang baharu yang mempunyai latar belakang yang memberikan harapan bahawa di bawah bimbingan dan kepimpinannya, Parlimen Malaysia akhirnya bakal mengikuti jejak langkah Parlimen di negara Komanwel lain untuk membawa agenda reformasi dan inovasi parlimen, tetapi perkara ini nampaknya hanya tinggal sebagai angan-angan.

Pada pertengahan 90-an, kita memimpin dunia dengan konsep Koridor Raya Multimedia, namun lebih dua dekad kemudian, ketika negara-negara lain terus maju dengan menjalankan sidang Parlimen maya, kita masih terus mencari pelbagai alasan untuk melaksanakan sidang Parlimen secara maya.

Adakah Parlimen Malaysia sedang bergerak maju atau mundur ke belakang?

(Kenyataan Media Ahli Parlimen DAP Iskandar Puteri Lim Kit Siang di Parlimen pada hari Rabu 2 Disember 2020)

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