KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the process of reinstating the Parliamentary Services Act should be expedited to ensure that Parliament is free from executive power.
He said Parliament’s transformation effort was also vital to maintain democracy and freedom of expression in the country.
“It has to be expedited, the attorney-general has been notified, some issues are being scrutinised and need to be simplified so as not to avoid problems when we table it (at Parliament),” the prime minister said after attending a programme where he met senators at Parliament today.
Restoring the act, which was first enacted in 1963 and repealed in 1992, would give Parliament autonomy over its administration and enable it to be a check and balance in monitoring the government’s executive power.
Meanwhile, Anwar also reminded MPs to always focus on moral issues despite having differences of opinion when participating in parliamentary debates.
“You can debate, you can have different opinions, but there is no need to be rude and nasty,” he said, adding that the issue of dilapidated schools and hardcore poverty will be among the issues to be raised in Budget 2023, which will be tabled on February 24. – Bernama, February 14, 2023
