House of shame - Dewan Rakyat

'We all know what Parliament is, and we are all ashamed of it' - Robert Louis Stevenson

NEW The Dewan Rakyat is an august House where elected representatives debate and make laws for the good of the country. This is serious business: by their votes, the course of the nation's history can be altered for better or worse. By a single act of Parliament, a reprehensible bill can become the law of the land with dire consequences for the peace of the land. Conversely, the passage of a crucial bill can be lauded as a legislative milestone. But in parliamentary affairs, the one person who plays a decisive role is the Speaker. The Speaker must ensure the orderly flow of business with a sense of total impartiality. In recent times, the Dewan Rakyat Speaker was not a man of exemplary character when he oversaw the month-long proceedings. He has turned the citadel of democracy into a pantomime,with his bias and unprofessional conduct.

Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia is not an elected lawmaker nor is he a member of the ruling party. Logically, he should stay above the fray and allow the tide of the debate to ebb and flow. At the same time, he must keep watch on the Yang Berhormats to make certain they abide by the “parliamentary rules and traditions”. It is Pandikar Amin's responsibility to shed light on all these rules with a sense of fair play. If a fracas breaks out, it is his duty to calm the storm and maintain order without fear or favour. More importantly, he must protect the rights of all members – Barisan Nasional as well as opposition – “including the right to freedom of speech”. But on most counts, he has failed and failed miserably.

At every turn, Pandikar Amin was there to thwart the every move of the opposition to seek a just hearing. He was prompt to throw out those sitting on the other side without reason or rhyme. He acted as if he is lord and master of all he surveys and Parliament is just a plaything. When coming down hard on the opposition, he gave the impression that opposition lawmakers are an unruly bunch of hotheads who do not deserve to sit in the chamber. They should be ejected. He portrayed the other side as gentlemen of high honour and decorum. Pandikar Amin may be the big boss in the Dewan Raykat but he cut a sorry figure in the court of public opinion.

In the eyes of the people, the Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat is seen as nothing more than mere clay in the hands of the government. He is pliable and can easily be moulded in every which way his paymaster chooses. He can be likened to a puppet dancing to the tune of the piper. Every step he makes is strictly in accordance with the wishes of the ruling political masters. His vow is not to protect the sanctity of parliamentary democracy, but that of the interests of the ruling elite. He acts with false bravado in every showdown with the opposition. Pandikar Amin may be a champion and a hero to the BN crowd, but to the people, he is a fraidy-cat who dares not beat an independent path.

Pandikar Amin presided over the suspension of four opposition MPs, sparking a placard protest in the House itself. There are two ways of looking at this episode. If you peer at it through a BN telescope, the big picture you get is one of ignominy: the opposition members were a disgraceful lot; they brought disgrace to the House and the country with their unruly behaviour. But if you put the affair under the public miscroscope, you get a detailed result: the Speaker himself had acted in a manner that made a mockery of the principles and practices of parliamentary democracy. Pandikar Amin was clearly acting in concert with the BN mob.

It is now left to the voters to decide how they want the Dewan Rakyat to look like in the next round. In 2008, they voted in a sizeable chunk of the opposition members and expect them to champion their cause. But the “sheriff” wearing the BN batch had frustrated their moves. The legitimate voice of the people is hardly heard simply because it comes from the other camp. It is always gagged and only the sound of the BN people and the “frogs” are given ample talk time. This has been the consistent disturbing trend in the Dewan Rakyat. The Speaker must take all the blame for conduct most inappropriate. The only way to restore dignity, honour and justice to the tarnished House and make the Speaker's chair an object of respect is through the ballot box. Parliamentary democracy can only thrive when the Speaker works for and not against the people's representatives.