Why haven’t Sarawak emergency ordinances come to Parliament, asks MP

 

Kelvin Yii said he agrees with the emergency in Sarawak but it must be done the right way.

KUALA LUMPUR: A Sarawak MP wants to know why the ordinances for Sarawak’s proclamation of emergency, which was extended to Feb 2 next year, has not been brought to Parliament yet.

Citing Article 150 of the Federal Constitution, Dr Kelvin Yii (PH-Bandar Kuching) asked the government to explain why the ordinances have not been tabled, debated and voted on in Parliament yet.

He also pointed out that the ordinances gazetted for Sarawak were only for the state and not a continuation of the ordinances that were in effect nationwide from mid-January to Aug 1.

“I do not oppose this localised emergency. In fact, I agree that this is not the time to hold a state election.

“But I think all processes and procedures must be done correctly, according to the constitution. I call on the law minister to explain,” he said while debating the King’s speech in the Dewan Rakyat today.

He also took aim at the Election Commission for failing to implement electoral reforms in view of the pandemic, saying his proposals to allow postal voting, especially for Sabahans and Sarawakians, were shot down.

Yii also suggested that the government offer cash incentives to people who report their negative results from self-test kits on MySejahtera, to help the health ministry obtain a more accurate daily Covid-19 positive rate.

Currently, he said, many were buying and using self test kits but not reporting it on MySejahtera when they tested negative.

“Maybe the government can credit people a cash back whenever they report their results on MySejahtera.

“If the prices of test kits are subsidised to RM10, for example, they can maybe be sold at RM11 or RM12. When the users report their results on the app, RM1 or RM2 can be credited back to the user.

“This will incentivise them to report their results,” he said. - FMT