[UPDATED] Don’t turn Dewan Rakyat into ‘circus’, Anwar tells MPs

KUALA LUMPUR – Dewan Rakyat members are reminded not to turn the lower house into a “circus” and to adhere to parliamentary decorum.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s (Tambun-PH) reminder this morning came after shouting matches erupted in the lower house yesterday as lawmakers debated the motion of confidence, among others.

“I have told the deputy prime minister II (Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof) and the (government) chief whip to tell the MPs to abide by parliamentary decorum and not to behave excessively.

“I hope the opposition leader (Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin) would do the same for Perikatan Nasional (PN). We can agree to disagree and debate but not to the extent where people would describe the Parliament as a ‘circus’.”

Similarly, Anwar also rebuked the opposition bloc and reiterated that he is focused on ridding the country of corruption, and would rather discuss means to better develop the nation rather than be embroiled in personal attacks.

“I am committed to cleaning the country from corruption, including (the acts of) ‘hoi, hoi ya hoi’ will not happen again. This includes those across the aisle who had approved contracts to their own relatives,” said Anwar, referring to a phrase used by Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim (Arau-PN) during the commotion yesterday.

Yesterday, Hamzah (Larut-PN) along with Shahidan sang verses of “hoi, hoi ya hoi” from Altimet’s Aduh Malaysia, chiding Anwar who had formed the government with the help of Barisan Nasional (BN).

The song was made famous and used extensively by Anwar during his election campaign as means to cast aspersions that Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) political opponents, including BN, had engaged in corruption.

Yesterday, a shouting match erupted after Shahidan (Arau-PN) questioned the need to conduct a motion of confidence for Anwar.

The former Umno lawmaker, who is now with PN, said this is unnecessary considering Anwar’s appointment has been “legitimised” by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

This however irked government lawmakers, especially Mohd Sany Hamzan (Hulu Langat-PH) who shouted incessantly at Shahidan and other opposition lawmakers. – The Vibes, December 20, 2022