Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz told Parliament this morning that the use of the term did not infringe Article 32(2) of the Federal Constitution where the position of the Raja Permaisuri Agong is enshrined.
“It does not contradict (the law). In terms of protocol, in this country the Raja Permaisuri Agong is the consort of the Agong and she is given priority,” he explained.
As such, he said, the “First Lady” tag was merely used out of habit or convention.
“This is an old practice in international politics. Like in the UK, Queen Elizabeth is not the ‘First Lady’ because she is the queen. The ‘First Lady’ is the wife of the chief executive of the country, which is the wife of the prime minister.... so if before, the prime minister is Tony Blair, then the ‘First Lady’ is Cherie Blair.
“In Japan, they have an emperor and the empress but the ‘First Lady’ is the wife of the prime minister.
“So here, I would like to explain that there is no need for any confusion on this issue in terms of the law,” he said.
Nazri also reiterated, for the second time since Parliament opened last week, that Rosmah, as Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s wife, did not have a special “First Lady of Malaysia” division of her own under the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
“There is no special financial allocation to fund the activities of the prime minister’s wife,” he said.
Nazri was responding during Question Time this morning to Johari Abdul (PKR-Sungai Petani) who had asked for a definition of the “First Lady” title from the government and if it referred to the Raja Permaisuri Agong or the prime minister’s wife Rosmah.
Johari had also asked the administration to state that if Rosmah was the “First Lady”, how much allocation she was given to fund her activities this year.
In his supplementary question, the MP also questioned if Nazri’s answer was in conflict with Article 32(2) of the Federal Constitution which states that the Raja Permaisuri Agong is given priority above all others.
“The first is the Agong and number two is the Raja Permaisuri Agong,” he pointed out.
He also raised the question again over the existence of the FLOM unit in the PMO, which the government denied last week in the House.
“It was reported in several newspapers and the alternative media that FLOM exists and there is a list of six officers, led by one Datuk Siti Aizah as special officer.
“This means that if the division exists, there will be an allocation for staff and finances,” he said.
When responding, Nazri told Johari that he had not been present when a similar point was raised last week by Anthony Loke (DAP-Rasah) in Parliament and answered.
He also noted that “First Lady” activities do not refer to those of the Raja Permaisuri Agong but the wife of the country’s chief executive, which is Rosmah.
“If you look at the history of CHOGM (Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting), which organises what is said to be ‘First Lady’ activities, who attends is not the Agong but the chief executive of the country.
“So previously when our prime minister was Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the ‘First Lady’ is (Tun Dr) Siti Hasmah (Mohd Ali),” he said.
The CHOGM is a biennial summit meeting of government heads from all Commonwealth nations.
In another supplementary question, P. Kamalanathan (BN-Hulu Selangor) asked if the opposition’s incessant questions on Rosmah’s role were politically motivated, saying that the latter’s activities abroad and in Malaysia brought benefits to the country.
“It’s okay for them to ask because they do not understand. They have not been in the federal government before.
“When in the government, there are invitations occasionally that are given specifically to the prime minister’s wife,” said Nazri in response.
He then listed several trips made by Rosmah since 2009 where she had been invited in her capacity as Najib’s wife to deliver keynote addresses at several conventions and forums.
“All these are invitations to the prime minister’s wife and any expenditure comes from allocation in the Prime Minister’s Department. There is nothing additional,” he said.
Last week, Nazri told the House that while Rosmah did not have staff of her own under the PMO, her husband’s officers were often seconded to assist her in her duties.
In the June session of Parliament last year, Najib was forced to debunk the “First Lady” tag used on his wife and explained in a written reply to Chua Tian Chang (PKR-Batu) that according to Malaysian custom, culture and protocol, such a title was not a practice.
He also said that the position did not exist in the Federal Constitution.
Chua, also known as Tian Chua, had questioned the advertisement published in the New York Times on April 16, 2010, and had asked if the prime minister was aware that using the term “First Lady” on the latter’s wife contravened Article 32 of the Federal Constitution.
Najib did not directly answer if his wife was accurately called the “First Lady” but noted that if the practice was used in Malaysia, the “First Lady” should be a person whose status is below that of the Raja Permaisuri Agong.
“Many people believe that in the Malaysian context, the term ‘First Lady’ refers to the Raja Permaisuri Agong.
“This perception is inaccurate. This is because the position of the Raja Permaisuri Agong is higher than the ‘First Lady’,” he said.
He also agreed that the position of the Raja Permaisuri Agong was enshrined in Article 32 (2) of the Federal Constitution, and that this should be given priority above all others after the King.
Rosmah has been constantly criticised by the opposition for her extensive travels abroad and accused of hogging the media limelight too often in her role as the prime minister’s wife.
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