The second reading of the Constitution (Amendment) (No 2) Bill 2026, which seeks to separate the roles of the attorney-general and the public prosecutor, has been postponed.
This is after the motion on the Special Select Committee’s report on the proposed amendments was removed from today’s Dewan Rakyat agenda.
Four government backbenchers confirmed the matter with Malaysiakini when contacted.
Three of the Pakatan Harapan lawmakers requested anonymity, while another, Petaling Jaya MP Lee Chean Chung, confirmed the matter on record.
"Confirmed. In the BBC (WhatsApp) group," Lee said, when asked how the postponement was communicated to government lawmakers.
BBC refers to the Backbenchers Club.
No tabling
Malaysiakini sighted the shared message, which said that the motion will not be tabled in the Dewan Rakyat today, and that the lower house’s business will instead continue with the Rice and Paddy Control (Amendment) Bill 2026, and any further changes to the parliamentary agenda will be announced later.
Sekijang MP Dr Zaliha Mustafa, who chairs the BBC, also confirmed the postponement.
"Yup, that was what the BBC was told," she said when asked about the motion and the bill.
"We were only given notice that the Dewan (Rakyat) will table another bill - Rice and Paddy Control (Amendment) Bill 2026," she said.
Zaliha also denied that the decision was linked to Harapan's poor showing in the Johor state election on July 11, which saw BN claiming a landslide majority.
Masjid Tanah MP Mas Ermieyati Samsudin told Malaysiakini that she had received a notification of the bill's postponement.
“Yes, I was notified of the postponement at 12 noon sharp (Saturday). No reason was given (for the postponement),” she said, adding that she was initially scheduled to go second to debate the bill, after Kota Bharu MP Takiyuddin Hassan.
She also shared the text message which she received from the Dewan Rakyat secretary on the matter.
‘Why the sudden postponement?’
Yesterday, Pasir Mas MP Ahmad Fadhli Shaari took to Facebook to question the postponement of the bill.
“The bill to separate the roles of the AG and the public prosecutor, which requires a two-thirds majority vote and was supposed to be tabled tomorrow, has suddenly been postponed.
“Why the sudden postponement? We all know the reason," he said in the short post.
Despite the confirmation by multiple MPs, an aide to Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said told Malaysiakini last night that the committee report would be tabled this afternoon.
However, the aide could not confirm if the debate on the constitutional amendment would proceed today.
First tabling on Feb 23
The bill was first tabled in the Dewan Rakyat on Feb 23 and later referred to a parliamentary special select committee (PSSC) for further review.
Through amendments to six articles and the insertion of two new articles, the bill provides for creating a new constitutional office of the public prosecutor, transferring the prosecutorial powers held by the AG to an independent officeholder.
The six Federal Constitution articles to be amended include Article 42, which refers to the AG being replaced with the public prosecutor and Article 132, which recognises AG and the public prosecutor officers in the public service structure.
The bill also included consequential amendments within those same articles through multiple clauses, seeking to insert Article 145a on the establishment, appointment, tenure and removal of the public prosecutor, as well as Article 145b on the public prosecutor's powers and duties.
Through the proposed amendments, the AG will no longer oversee criminal prosecutions.
Instead, the new public prosecutor will have exclusive authority to institute, conduct, or discontinue criminal proceedings, except in syariah, native, or court-martial cases.
Last month, a group of government MPs raised concerns about the proposal, particularly the bill’s Clause 18 that states “the Judicial and Legal Service Commission (JLSC) shall inform Parliament of the names of persons to be nominated as public prosecutor and Parliament may give comments to the commission, if any.”
They urged the government to make several changes to the bill, including requiring a simple majority in the house to approve a nominee. - Mkini
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