'Threats to quit cabinet meaningless, ask for Azalina's sacking instead'

Gelang Patah MP Lim Kit Siang called BN leaders' threats to quit their cabinet posts over the Hudud Bill "meaningless" and lacking in concrete measures.

He was referring to cabinet ministers MCA president Liow Tiong Lai and Gerakan president Mah Siew Keong's threat yesterday to quit should PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang's Private Member's Bill be passed.

This was after the uproar on Thursday in Parliament, when Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Azalina Othman Said proposed to move Hadi's bill up the queue on the order paper, seconded by Deputy Works Minister Rosnah Abdul Rashid Shirlin.

"Instead of making meaningless statements after the horses had bolted, Liow and Mah should restore the status quo ante before Azalina stood up in Parliament after Thursday’s lunch break to propose the ministerial motion to give priority to Hadi’s hudud motion [...]," he said in a statement.

He said the duo should instead call for action to be taken against Azalina and Rosnah, by sacking the duo for going against BN's collective stand against the motion, and for the cabinet to repudiate the duo.

Lim said the best way forward is to ensure Hadi's bill does not see the light of day in Parliament.

"If Liow and Mah are not prepared to restore the status quo ante before Azalina’s ministerial motion on Thursday, they would not have much credibility even if they make all sorts of promises and threats.

"Threats of quitting the cabinet makes news headlines, but how credible are they?" quipped Lim.

No attempt to stop Azalina

Since the MCA and Gerakan chiefs' show of defiance, MIC president S Subramaniam and MCA deputy Wee Ka Siong have also joined the chorus to quit the cabinet.

He also asked what Liow and Mah had done to try to stop Azalina from her motion to fast-track the bill, given that her plan was "virtually an open secret known even to the media".

"What did Liow and Mah do in the 24 hours before Azalina moved the motion [...]?" he asked.

"In fact, a day earlier on Wednesday, a minister and head of a BN component party from Sabah had written an urgent letter to the Prime Minister, Najib Razak expressing the opposition of the MPs of his party to any proposal to prioritise Hadi’s [...] bill motion, as it was against the consensus of all BN leaders at a meeting in March 2015, as well as against the cabinet decision the previous week on May 20, 2016," added Lim.- Mkini