COMMUNICATIONS Minister Fahmi Fadzil has clarified that the government is merely seeking to provide feedback and share ideas with the speaker of the Dewan Rakyat regarding matters which occurred during the sitting.
He said the meeting between the leader of the house, the leader of the opposition or a member of Parliament (MP) with the Speaker, to get advice, views or exchange ideas from time to time, is common in the Dewan Rakyat.
“We cannot tell the speaker what to do. For example, when Tasek Gelugor MP (Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan) apologised, that was after a meeting with the speaker.
“If I'm not mistaken, it was the leader of the opposition who met the speaker. Hence, meeting the speaker is something common in the Dewan Rakyat,” he told reporters at an eye health screening programme in Lembah Pantai today.
Fahmi said this when asked to comment on his statement on Friday that the Cabinet will contact the office of the speaker of the Dewan Rakyat over false statements issued by MPs, when debating on the motion of thanks for the royal address, over the past two weeks.
However, Bukit Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh on Saturday said that Fahmi’s statement gave the impression that the government was interfering in Parliament's affairs.
On March 5, Wan Saiful had apologised for uttering malicious statements against the prime minister in the Dewan Rakyat.
Wan Saiful apologised after Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul asked the Perikatan Nasional (PN) MP to explain the statement he made when debating on the motion of thanks on February 28. – Bernama, March 10, 2024
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