NIBONG TEBAL – Senior Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali has said that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s decree yesterday on the reconvening of Parliament is in line with Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s four-phase National Recovery Plan.
“In the context of the parliamentary session, the prime minister has stated that Parliament will sit. We never said Parliament would not sit.
“But as the head, he acted in accordance with the provisions of the law and standing orders in Parliament, and in accordance with the appropriate time to hold a conference (Parliament),” Azmin told a press conference here today.
“For me, the Agong’s statement is in line with the government’s intention to hold a parliamentary sitting at the appropriate time so the democratic process can continue.”
On the Agong’s decree that the government should act decisively to speed up the vaccination process for the people, Azmin said the government has implemented various efforts to ensure the country achieves herd immunity as soon as possible.
He added that the government has not taken unilateral action and has listened to the views of various parties, including state leaders.
Azmin said decisions made via the National Security Council (NSC) are not done unilaterally but are the result of discussions with relevant experts.
“The health director-general himself said that, if we do not take firm action, the number of new Covid-19 cases may jump to 13,000 a day by June 14. But on June 14, the daily caseload was only 4,900.
“This shows that the steps taken by the government to combat Covid-19 are effective. This means the implementation of the MCO (movement control order) at various levels, and efforts to support the Health Ministry worked.
“I am very happy because these efforts are seeing success. The government will also continue to uphold the federal constitution in order to preserve national security and peace.”
Azmin’s comments echoed Dewan Rakyat Speaker Azhar Azizan Harun, who told Utusan Malaysia that the prime minister has the prerogative to set a date for the reconvening of Parliament.
Azhar was quoted as saying that Muhyiddin’s plan to reconvene Parliament in September or October is “rational”.
“He has the right to convene a parliamentary sitting in accordance with the federal constitution; in fact, he has rationally explained the matter.
“Part of it is because of the Covid-19 daily cases and so on, so on behalf of Parliament, we will wait for the date to be set.” – The Vibes, June 17, 2021
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