KUALA LUMPUR – A parliamentary special select committee (PSSC) meeting on foreign labour issues was called off at the eleventh hour for the umpteenth time due to a no-show by ministers who had been summoned as witnesses.
The PSSC on Fundamental Liberty and Constitutional Rights meeting was postponed at the request of its chairman and Beaufort MP Datuk Seri Azizah Mohd Dun as Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin and Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan were unable to present themselves.
This was according to PSSC member and Tuaran MP Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau, who said in a statement today the proceeding had been postponed more than three times, causing delays in the presentation of a report to the Dewan Rakyat.
“The agenda for today’s meeting was to ask the ministers to explain why foreign workers coming to Malaysia have to pay their agent before they are considered for entry here,” he said, asserting that labourers from Bangladesh had to fork out RM25,000 to their agents to work here.
“I am disappointed that the meeting had to be postponed at the last minute just because ministers who were invited failed to show up without a solid excuse,” he lamented, pointing out that he had purchased a flight ticket and booked accommodations for his time here.
He added that since notice of the meeting had already been sent out earlier on August 8, the ministers involved should have given priority to attending the proceedings as the invite had been issued by Parliament.
Separately, 25 organisations, trade unions and groups were also left hanging after the meeting’s postponement as they had originally intended to meet the committee to urge action for Sabri Umar, an Indonesian worker who was wrongfully detained, charged and whipped.
Led by Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture, the groups had earlier today issued a joint statement calling for the PSSC to ensure that Sabri will be allowed to stay in Malaysia to pursue justice until his case is settled.
The case has grabbed the attention of many parties after 46 civil organisations issued a statement crying foul over Sabri’s wrongful caning, as it was against Section 311 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which prohibits caning until the appeal is heard and decided upon.
The groups had urged the Malaysian government to issue an apology to Sabri and abolish caning as a form of corporal punishment in the country. – The Vibes, August 16, 2022
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