BN moves to ensure full house in vote to suspend Anwar

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 15 — All Barisan Nasional (BN) lawmakers have been instructed to attend tomorrow’s parliamentary sitting for the vote on the proposed six-month suspension of Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and three other Pakatan Rakyat MPs.

Tomorrow is the final day of the current parliamentary session.

Anwar (picture) is facing the boot from Parliament for six months for claiming earlier this year that public relations consultancy APCO Worldwide had been behind both the 1 Malaysia and One Israel concepts.

Yesterday, Anwar was the only MP recommended for punishment over the issue in the final report by Parliament’s Rights and Privileges Committee.

Gelugor MP Karpal Singh, who is also a committee member, was recommended to receive severe “admonishment” for allegedly insulting Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia, the committee’s chairman.

The Malaysian Insider understands BN chief parliamentary whip Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz has reminded his fellow lawmakers today to cancel any prior engagements planned for tomorrow.

BN is looking to avoid a repeat of Budget 2010 where the ruling coalition’s proposals were nearly scuttled by Pakatan Rakyat (PR) when it barely got through by a 66-63 vote margin at the third reading in the Dewan Rakyat.

A notice of motion to suspend three Pakatan Rakyat by a Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department was also listed in today’s Dewan Rakyat Order Paper.

The motion cites Subang MP R. Sivarasa, Gombak MP Azmin Ali and Karpal for contempt for revealing and discussing the proceedings of the Rights and Privileges Committee.

In the Order Paper, it stated that Sivarasa and Karpal as members of the Rights and Privileges Committee were cited for contempt for making statements outside the house by disclosing testimonies and letters revealed during the proceedings of the committee.

It said that the lawmakers had contravened Standing Order 85, which states that statements obtained in front of a select committee and any letters issued to it cannot be shown to anyone until the notice is brought to the House.

It also said that Azmin had touched on the testimonies and letter that was submitted to the committee in a notice dated December 6 under Standing Order 18 (1).

The motion to cite the three for contempt was related to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who has referred to the Rights and Privileges Committee for alleging that the 1Malaysia is linked APCO and One Israel Campaign.