KUALA LUMPUR, July 14 — De facto law minister Datuk Liew Vui Keong has confirmed that he is also the minister in charge of Parliament for the upcoming session.
In a statement by Liew today, he also explained that the Parliament Secretariat had received a name for the Speaker from Putrajaya on July 2, and this is in compliance with the 14 days’ requirement under Standing Order 4(1).
“Certain quarters have made unfounded allegations on this 14 days’ requirement with an ulterior motive to mislead the public.
“There’s no such non-compliance with the legal requirement as alleged,” the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department said, after a visit to prepare for the sitting this Monday.
Retired Court of Appeal judge Datuk Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof is expected to be Speaker.
This comes even as Pakatan Harapan (PH) chief secretary Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah was previously quoted as saying that the post will go to an MP.
Umno new secretary-general Tan Sri Annuar Musa had earlier alleged that Putrajaya may have to postpone the Parliament sitting as it did not comply with the 14-day notice when appointing the Speaker.
Liew said today the PH government will uphold and respect the doctrine of separation of powers to prevent abuse of power, as he urged the public to continue supporting the three institutions of the country: The judiciary, legislative, and executive.
“It is important that these three be separated. Previously, it was under one executive and the people had been complaining,” he said.
The Dewan Rakyat sitting will be held from July 16 to August 16, and will be shown on live telecast from 10am until 10.30am, followed by live streaming.
“I want the rakyat to see what is happening in the parliament proceedings including the question and answer session and debates,” he said.
“The people can address their questions to me directly on the portal. We want to be more open as this is all part of the New Malaysia,” he said, referring to the Parliament’s website.
