Cabinet must approve any suspension of EQA enforcement, says minister

 Natural resources and environmental sustainability minister Arthur Joseph Kurup dismisses concerns amended Environmental Quality Act 1974 will allow him to arbitrarily suspend the law.

Natural resources and environmental sustainability minister Arthur Joseph Kurup said any decision to suspend the law must first be reviewed by the AGC and approved by the Cabinet. (Bernama pic)

KUALA LUMPUR:

 Natural resources and environmental sustainability minister Arthur Joseph Kurup has dismissed claims that amendments to the Environmental Quality Act 1974 (Act 127) will give him excessive power.

He said the Cabinet must approve any suspension of the Act’s enforcement.

The amendment bill introduces a new subsection that empowers the minister to suspend the operation of all or any provision of the Act in different parts of the country.

Kurup explained that any decision to suspend the law must first be reviewed by the Attorney-General’s Chambers and subsequently approved by the Cabinet.

“This ensures that public interest and the uniformity of the law are properly upheld,” he said when winding up the debate on the amended bill in the Dewan Rakyat today.

“Checks and balances are clear here, and the amendment is not arbitrary. This approach ensures that the Act is applied in a limited, targeted manner, consistent with the Federal Constitution.”

He noted that similar suspension clauses exist in other legislation, such as the Architects Act 1967, the Electricity Supply Act 1990, and the Gas Supply Act 1993.

Kurup also clarified that suspension powers under Act 127 would apply only in Sabah and Sarawak, allowing the states to manage scheduled waste disposal according to their own ordinances.

“The suspension will prevent conflicts between federal law and state ordinances,” he said.

He said the amendment is based on a Putrajaya decision in 2022, which aims to preserve the autonomy and rights of Sabah and Sarawak under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).

“This bill is a strategic government measure to enhance environmental law frameworks in line with federalism, good governance, and our commitment to implementing MA63,” he said.

Earlier, several MPs raised concerns that the amendment would give the minister too much power to suspend the law without parliamentary oversight.

One of them, Ngeh Khoo Ham (PH-Beruas), questioned whether the amendment violates the doctrine of separation of powers, as Parliament would effectively be granting absolute authority to a minister.

He also asked whether it contravenes the principle of equality before the law under Article 8 of the Federal Constitution, since the minister decides the areas where the law applies. - FMT