Disband CEP now, activist group tells PH

Let Parliament function without perceived control by the council, says ENGAGE.

PETALING JAYA: An activist group has demanded the immediate dissolution of the Council of Eminent Persons (CEP) in reaction to news indicating that it will remain indefinitely as a body advising Putrajaya.

Thomas Fann, speaking for an organisation called ENGAGE, said it was unacceptable for the government to retain an “unelected and unconstitutional” body with “such wide-ranging powers”.

ENGAGE, which was formed in 2013, describes itself as “an NGO that is committed to nation-building through positive, proactive and purposeful engagement.”

Yesterday, at the official launch of a private hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad quashed speculation that the council would be disbanded tomorrow, which marks the 101st day since Pakatan Harapan (PH) came to power.

“CEP won’t be dissolved,” Mahathir said. “I need their services until all problems are solved.”

The CEP does not have to answer to Parliament.

Fann pointed out that a full Cabinet had been formed and Parliament was setting up various select committees. They should be allowed to function without any perceived oversight by the CEP, he said.

“If the prime minister still needs the advice of the council’s members, he can ask them for it in his personal capacity,” he added. “The CEP should be disbanded immediately.”

DAP veteran Dr Boo Cheng Hau made a similar call, saying there were enough ministers and experts in the Prime Minister’s Department alone to provide Mahathir with advice.

He noted PH’s promise in its election manifesto that a government formed by it would require parliamentary approval of executive decisions.

He said the Cabinet should be the body to advise the prime minister.

“The CEP is redundant and is accountable neither to taxpayers nor to Parliament,” he said. “It acts outside the reach of the Federal Constitution. There’s no need for it.”

Shahrul Aman Mohd Saari, the acting chairman of Bersih 2.0, noted that Australia and several other countries had advisory bodies like the CEP, but he said these were properly formalised.

“One reason people are so uneasy with the CEP is that it’s new and people find it intrusive because of the perception that it holds power it shouldn’t,” he said, giving the example of its apparent power to decide on the appointment of judges.

Last June, the CEP came under fire from Bukit Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh and former Malaysian Bar presidents for summoning and telling the nation’s then-top two judges to resign. They said the council, which was formed to advise the government on economic and financial matters, had overstepped its bounds. -FMT