Parliament to get RM485m makeover

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 23 — A minister revealed today a RM485 million expansion plan to renovate the 47-year-old Parliament building, which will see the construction of a new chamber and a new six-storey building for administration and MPs’ offices.

Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz, who is the minister in charge of Parliament, told The Malaysian Insider this afternoon that the project should kick off by middle of next year and was currently pending approval from the Cabinet.

“I have spoken to officials from the Public Works Department and they have been instructed to prepare their paper for submission to the Cabinet soon,” he said when met in Parliament.

Nazri explained that he had collected feedback from MPs across the political divide on the future expansion plans for Parliament (picture) and they had unanimously agreed not to move the House elsewhere.

“I have touched base with them to see what they feel about the Parliament building and it was unanimous... all MPs said that Parliament should stay here so that is the basic principle behind PWD’s proposal to the Cabinet,” he said.

Nazri revealed that work should take about three years and begin with the construction of new chamber at the current badminton court behind Parliament at a cost of RM55 million.

The chamber, he added, was to temporarily house Dewan Rakyat and Senate sittings when the present chamber is undergoing refurbishment and rehabilitation work.

Next, Nazri revealed that a new six-storey building costing RM300 million would be built within the compound and is set to house administration and MPs’ offices.

Currently, MPs do not have offices in Parliament.

“The construction of the chamber and the new building is scheduled to take about 18 months,” said Nazri.

Once the two buildings are completed, he added, parliamentary sittings would be moved to the chamber and upgrading work on the present Parliament House would commence.

“It should take another 18 months and will cost about RM130 million,” he said, adding that the House was old and in need of repairs.

Earlier today, there was a small stir in Parliament when the floor of the MPs’ lounge, located adjacent to the House chamber, was flooded with rainwater that leaked from the ceiling.

Approached by reporters at the Parliament lobby, Nazri said such leaks were common in an old building.

“This is an old building. What do you want me to do? Demolish the building?” he said.

Pushed further for a comment, the straight-talking politician smiled and described the rain as “an act of God”.

“It’s the act of God. It is raining. This is an old building,” he said.

The current Parliament House comprises two parts — a three-storey main building and a 17-storey tower. The main building hosts the Dewan Rakyat and the Dewan Negara while ministers’ offices are located in the tower.

The country’s first Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman suggested the construction of Parliament House in December 1959.

Work on the building began in September 1962, and the RM18 million Parliament House was opened by Tuanku Syed Putra ibni Almarhum Syed Hassan Jamalullail, the third Yang di-Pertuan Agong, on November 21, 1963. The 35-acre site also houses a deer park.

A statue of Tunku Abdul Rahman was erected near Parliament Square. No other prime minister has had a statue made after that due to rising Islamic consciousness.

Earlier in June, there was an uproar when the government revealed that it was considering moving Parliament to the Putrajaya administrative capital at a cost of up to RM800 million.

Later, it was proposed that Parliament be moved to the under-utilised Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC), which was completed in 2003 at a cost of RM600 million, while the present House would be refurbished and turned into a “heritage building”.

At the time, Nazri, who is also the law minister, had noted that a new Parliament venue was desperately needed in the event more seats are added in the Dewan Rakyat, which now has 222 members. Another 70 sit in the Dewan Negara or the Upper House.

Following stinging criticisms from federal lawmakers, however, Works Minister Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansor cleared the air over the heavily-debated proposal to relocate Parliament and noted that the move would only be temporary, pending renovations at the current building.

He told reporters in Parliament on June 28 that the House would merely be undergoing a facelift estimated to cost between RM120 million and RM150 million, which would take between two and 2½ years.

Shaziman also explained that the suggestion to construct a new Parliament building was merely a proposal and the ministry still had about two months to prepare a full report for the Cabinet’s perusal.

Today, Nazri noted that he had already consulted Shaziman on the plans for Parliament and the latter was in full agreement.

“As soon as we get Cabinet approval, we will begin. I spoke to the works minister and he has agreed that there can only be one proposal and that is to keep Parliament here,” he said. - Malaysian Insider