KUALA LUMPUR – There will be no appointment to fill the vacant deputy Dewan Rakyat speaker seat in the current sitting.
This is after the lower House passed a motion moved by Law Minister Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar to suspend Standing Order 6 of the Dewan Rakyat, which requires two deputy speakers to be appointed at any one time.
The appointment has instead been postponed to the next parliamentary sitting that starts on October 25.
The deputy speaker’s seat fell vacant after Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said (Pengerang-BN) quit on August 23, citing hope for a reset to take place in the lower House.
Standing Order 6(1) stipulates that the House shall proceed to elect a replacement at the first convenient sitting after vacancy in the office of the deputy speaker occurs.
The motion to postpone the appointment was passed via a simple voice vote.
Responding to questions, Wan Junaidi said the decision was made to give the government time to make an amendment to Article 57(1)(b) of the federal constitution for the appointment of three deputy speakers instead of two.
The current provision specifically states that the Dewan Rakyat shall only elect two deputies.
“We will perhaps include a provision to say that one of the deputy speakers will be elected among the opposition MPs, regardless of who is in the government at the time.
“That is the government’s intention and why we postponed the appointment.”
Wan Junaidi added that he has discussed tabling the proposed amendment for its first reading at the end of the current sitting, which ends on October 12, with the attorney-general.
The minister in the prime minister’s department was responding to a comment by Sim Tze Tzin (Bayan Baru-PH) that it is necessary to appoint another deputy speaker to assist Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun and Datuk Mohd Rashid Hasnon (Batu Pahat-Bersatu) in the conducting of Parliament.
Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail (Kulim Bandar Baharu-PH) also stressed the importance of filling the seat, as it would be too much of a burden for just two individuals to handle parliamentary affairs.
This, he said, is especially with a slew of reforms expected to take place, including empowering the functions of Parliament, after the government and opposition signed a memorandum of understanding yesterday.
Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan (Pontian-BN) has been tipped to fill in the vacant position, having been moved by Umno as its sole candidate for the post.
The opposition, meanwhile, has pushed for Nga Kor Ming (Teluk Intan-PH) as its choice. – The Vibes, September 14, 2021
