Listen to His Majesty, minister tells government

 

Istana Negara today said Putrajaya did not obtain the King’s consent to revoke the emergency ordinances, which law minister Takiyuddin Hassan said had been annulled since July 21.

PETALING JAYA: A federal minister has called for all parties to respect the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s call for the emergency ordinances (EOs) to be tabled and debated in Parliament.

“Istana Negara’s statement was expected because of the differing interpretations of the Federal Constitution. For decades, governments have taken for granted how our political system should work,” minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Redzuan Yusof told FMT.

He said the powers and roles of the various pillars of the country, from the executive to legislative, to the monarchy and judiciary, are sometimes “unclear”.

This, he said, was because, over the years, the balance of power has shifted to the executive which also controlled the legislative branch through a strong majority in Parliament.

“The reality is that we need to have discussions over what the different pillars of the country can and cannot, or should and should not do.

“We are in a situation where the government has a very thin majority and as such, it is important that the views of all stakeholders from the executive, legislative, judiciary and monarchy are listened to.”

Earlier, Istana Negara said Putrajaya had not obtained the King’s consent to revoke the EOs when law minister Takiyuddin Hassan announced the annulment, effective July 21, in the House on Monday.

The King said the minister’s statement in Parliament on Monday was “inaccurate” and misled the MPs.

MPs have been calling for the issue to be debated on in the Dewan Rakyat. - FMT