Shafie hopes King, Conference of Rulers will intervene over postponement of Parliament sitting

 

Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal. -Reuters filepic

KOTA KINABALU: There is no reason for postponing the special Dewan Rakyat sitting on Monday (Aug 2) as no Members of Parliament have tested positive for Covid-19, says Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.

Calling the government’s postponement due to Covid-19 as an excuse to stay in power, the Semporna MP now hopes the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and Conference of Rulers will take necessary action to remedy this.

Shafie, who is also Parti Warisan Sabah president, claimed the government was using the risk of the virus spreading as an excuse to avoid Monday’s sitting.

He said the Covid-19 test results on Thursday (July 29) afternoon on MPs who attended Parliament that day all came back negative, thus there was no reason for the postponement.

“We regret what is happening, not just this coming Monday... what more ordered by Yang di-Pertuan Agong to allow the Emergency Ordinance to be debated.

“But unfortunately from the first day (of sitting) when we enquire on this matter (Ordinance), the government has been avoiding this.

“When we heard about the postponement, we were bewildered as we had taken enough precautions and steps to fly to Kuala Lumpur, and attend Parliament, including undergoing testing," he said during a Malaysiapost interview aired on Facebook.

He expressed concern about the state of the nation if rule of law was not adhered to.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob on Sunday (Aug 1) was quoted saying that the postponement was made based on science and health data, and not due to politics.

In a notice to MPs issued on Saturday (July 31), Dewan Rakyat secretary Nizam Mydin Bacha Mydin said Speaker Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun was informed by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin of the postponement of the special sitting in accordance with the advice of Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

Azhar had earlier confirmed that two MPs and 12 Parliament staff tested positive for Covid-19, while another 58 Parliament staff and five or six MPs are under home quarantine.

Previously, Bagan Datuk MP Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Nibong Tebal MP Datuk Mansor Othman have confirmed that they are positive. - Star