PARLIAMENT | The Dewan Rakyat descended into pandemonium as government and opposition MPs traded insults ahead of the debate on the Election Commission's redelineation report.
Even before Najib Abdul Razak could table a motion to debate the report, several opposition MPs interjected to raise questions about the validity of the report.
Among them was Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Gelang Patah) who questioned Dewan Rakyat Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia's power to impose an embargo on the delineation report last week.
The report was placed on the tables of the MPs last Thursday and could not be shared with the public due to the embargo.
Pandikar, who said Lim was not following procedures, directed him to sit down.
BN MPs then joined in, shouting at Lim to comply and drowning his objections in a chorus of noisy voices.
Lim later lashed out at the BN side, saying: "Hypocrites! Thieves! Robbers!" which further riled up the BN MPs.
"This is indeed a communist," Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim (Umno-Baling MP) shot back at Kit Siang.
Another MP from the BN side was heard shouting at Lim: "How can you say that?
“It is your son who is the number one thief," in an apparent reference to Lim Guan Eng, who is the Bagan MP and who was present in the House.
PM tables report
An angry Pandikar later ordered Kit Siang to leave the House.
At least four parliamentary officers stood near Lim trying to convince him to leave but the DAP lawmaker refused to budge.
Pandikar then asked Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Azalina Othman to table a motion to suspend Lim for six months but it was never voted upon as the House once again descended into a shouting match.
Pandikar then decided to temporarily suspend the sitting and warned that if Lim was still in the House when it reconvened, he wouldn't hesitate to have him removed.
"I will use my power to ask the police make you leave," he said.
According to DAP sources, Lim was later called to Pandikar's office. Then Sentul district police chief R Munusamy was seen entering the office.
It is not known what was discussed as journalists outside were ushered away.
Seremban MP Anthony Loke clarified that Lim was not summoned to Pandikar's chambers during the brief recess at noon.
"Kit (Siang) was not called to meet Pandikar and he did not meet Pandikar. No one was summoned.
"But Guan Eng, myself, and some other Harapan leaders did meet the speaker to ask him to withdraw the motion to suspend Lim," Loke said when contacted by Malaysiakini.
He said a deputy speaker suggested that Kit Siang apologise, but the meeting, however, failed to find a solution in the end.
"But they didn't pursue the motion to suspend after the break," Loke added.
The Dewan Rakyat reconvened around 20 minutes later with Lim in the House.
Najib then proceeded to table the motion to debate the EC's redelineation report.
The passage of the report will enforce new electoral boundaries for the 14th general election. The opposition complains that the new boundaries will disproportionatelybenefit BN. -Mkini
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