JULY 14 — Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) notes with concern the development in Parliament on July 13, 2020, especially the process of the removal and installation of the Speaker and the deplorable behaviours by selected members of parliament.

Under Tan Sri Mohamad Ariff, the Parliament took the first step of reasserting its role as a legislative body that was able and ready to check the executive. Parliament showed Malaysians what our august house could be when it was able to hold public consultations and scrutinised the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) bill through a select committee or when it led the way for discussion regarding the abolition of the death penalty.

The ignominious display yesterday effectively negated the progress made under Mohamad Ariff and set Malaysian Parliament back to the days prior to the 14th General Election where the Parliament was often dismissed as a rubber stamp of the executive. Even worse, the Parliament today under its new Speaker was unable or unwilling to reign in members of Parliament who made racists and sexists remarks and take appropriate action against them.

The Parliament ought to be the institution where the peoples’ voices are heard, where the nation’s direction and policies are determined, where any excesses or flaws of the executive are scrutinised for the benefit of the people. Members of Parliament must remember that their duty is not to the political machination of their respective parties but to the people who elected them into Parliament and the manifesto that they stood on during the election.

Malaysians deserve better and Members of Parliament would do well to know that.

In Solidarity

Sevan Doraisamy

Executive Director

Suaram

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.