PANDIKAR: RULING MADE AS GOV’T WANTED DEBATE TO GO ON

(Bernama) – Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat Pandikar Amin Mulia yesterday explained that the ruling concerning the public debate between Tony Pua and Arul Kandasamy on the issue of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) was made after seeing the seriousness of both parties, as well as the government, to make it happen.

“I see that the government has made a statement that they are willing to facilitate the debate, which means that it is imminent that the debate will happen,” he said at the Speaker-meets-media editors event here last night.

Pandikar Amin said if he allowed the debate to go ahead, then it would be unnecessary for any committees, particularly the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), to convene meetings and investigate the allegations concerning the government’s strategic investment company.

He also stressed that the 1MDB issue should not be debated in public, but be solved using the right channels and via the PAC investigation, which was ongoing.

“Why should there be a debate while the matter was being investigated? I’m not against any debate, but wouldn’t it (debate) affect the results of the PAC investigation?

“If the statements are made by the PAC, then go ahead and debate. But the question now is whether the debate will solve the problems? The answer is no…then why not go through the (investigation) process first,” he asked.

Pua, who is Petaling Jaya Utara MP, had previously challenged Arul, President and Executive Director of 1MDB, to an open debate, to which the latter agreed.

Subsequently, Communications and Multimedia Minister Salleh Said Keruak conveyed the willingness of Radio Television Malaysia (RTM) to broadcast the debate live on Friday.

However, in the Dewan Rakyat sitting yesterday, Pandikar Amin ruled that Pua should resign as a member of the PAC first or refrain from being involved in the investigation of 1MDB if he planned to go ahead with the debate.

At the same time, he said Arul, who was the main witness, should also not be involved in the PAC investigation.

When asked about DAP’s plan to replace Pua with another representative so the public debate could go ahead as planned, the Speaker said he had no power to stop it.

“I cannot control anything that is not within my power…the reason why I got involved in this was because it is within my power. PAC is subject to the Dewan Rakyat’s Standing Order 77, which says that in whatever activities, PAC must follow the existing Standing Order.

“Whatever rules applicable to the Dewan Rakyat are also applicable to the PAC committee,” he added.