MARCH 28 — Parliament Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia’s banning of the media from Parliament lobby last week follows a long and consistent history of unpopular governments using their might, numbers and proxies in the form of the House Speaker to keep reporters from doing their jobs.
They did it in Ghana on the pretext of needing extra space for MPs; they did it in Uganda using the excuse that Opposition-leaning media was instigating MPs from opposite sides to fight. Poland’s unpopular government which moved for media restrictions in the Lower House had to rescind the order following public protests.
This is not the first time Pandikar Amin had sought to ban the media or restrict their movements. A similar ruling was made in 2008.
Several years ago, reporters were also ejected from the public gallery inside the Dewan. This, apparently was due to complaints from MPs that their every movement and conduct was being scrutinised — including being caught napping.
And last week, the Speaker restricted reporters and pixmen to the media room, citing complaints by MPs of being ambushed and harassed by pressmen.
So now, reporters are only able to interview and query MPs including ministers if these politicians decide to drop by the media room.
We know that the only place politicians find it hard to avoid the media is in Parliament as this is the only place they are compelled to attend and the easy movement of the Press allows little chance of escape — unless it is back in the Dewan or the MPs’ café — a restricted area only accessible to members of Parliament and their guests.
Following protests and criticisms, Pandikar Amin cited Standing Order 94 which empowers him to boot reporters back to the media room.
This rule states: ”Tuan Yang di-Pertua may grant a general permission to the representative of any journal to attend the sittings of the House under such rules as he may from time to time make for that purpose. If such rules are contravened, such permission may be revoked.”
But herein is where the Speaker’s interpretation of the rules is flawed. The Standing Order specifically cites “sitting of the House” which means, he has acted beyond his powers by dictating the media’s movements outside the Dewan Rakyat.
In the words of former National Union of Journalists (NUJ) executive council member Leo Camoens: “The Speaker should not act like a little dictator to say his power extends up to the Parliament car park.”
If anyone should be making these decisions it is the Chief Administrator of Parliament Datuk Awang Alik Jeman who is in charge of security and the overall operations of the House.
Another person is Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, minister in the Prime Minister’s Department who is in charge of Parliamentary affairs. (Although this too is debatable as it is inconsistent with the principle of separation of powers between the Executive and Legislature.)
That “safety” of MPs being cited by Pandikar Amin as another reason is not only laughable but an insult to the Press. That the movement of the media is restricted while the red carpet is rolled out for groups of thugs demanding to see MPs and even manhandling lawmakers — such as the Nov 24, 2016 assault on Shah Alam’s PAS MP Khalid Samad — makes a mockery of the Standing Orders and Pandikar Amin’s rationale.
Even in this instance, Pandikar Amin tried to overstep his boundaries by suggesting that it should be Parliament and not the police that takes action — what action exactly on a crime committed in the driveway of Parliament House, he did not say.
But it seems to be a recurring theme where the rules of separation of powers among the Legislature, Judiciary and Executive are blurred and keep being diluted.
If we are ever going to be a “First World” Parliament as our leaders aspire, then perhaps one should ensure that those in charge possess a First World mentality. Primitive policies and autocratic conduct are misplaced in what is supposed to be the symbol of a nation’s democracy.
* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.
** An earlier version of this column contained an error which has since been corrected.
