Umno and PAS lawmakers walked out of Dewan Rakyat speaker Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof's swearing-in ceremony on grounds that his appointment was against the Dewan Rakyat's Standing Orders.
The uproar from the opposition bench began when Dewan Rakyat secretary Roosme Hamzah informed the house that a letter from Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad on Ariff's appointment was received on July 2.
Takiyuddin Hassan (PAS-Kota Bahru) tried to interject, holding a copy of Dewan Rakyat's Standing Orders.
"I want to raise the point of order, Section 4(1) of the Standing Orders," he said, referring to a clause which states that the Dewan Rakyat secretary must be notified of the candidate for speaker 14 days before the meeting.
Roosme did not entertain Takiyuddin, prompting some opposition MPs to chant "Tipu! Tipu! (Lies!)"
Following this, opposition leader Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (BN-Bagan Datuk) led the BN and PAS MPs to walk out of the ceremony, which took place during their absence.
Anifah Aman (BN-Kimanis) and Khairy Jamaluddin (BN-Rembau) did not participate in the walkout.
BN and PAS lawmakers then held a press conference at the parliament lobby to explain why they walked out of the Dewan Rakyat.
"What the government did in suggesting the speaker’s name did not follow the set procedures," said Ahmad Zahid during the press conference.
Takiyuddin, who was also at the presser, then urged the government to postpone the sitting by 14 days so the proper procedures could be observed.
They insisted that they were not against Ariff as the Speaker, but they did not agree with the procedure that had been adopted.
"The suggested speaker is someone with integrity, very well-renowned and respected.
"We do not oppose him. We walked out not because of the person but because of the procedures," said Umno’s Pengerang MP Azalina Othman Said.
Ahmad Zahid also said they believe they have enough evidence that Ariff’s name was not suggested 14 days before the sitting.
Takiyuddin quoted several news reports which appeared to show the speaker candidate had not been named 14 days before the sitting.
For example, he quoted, on July 6, it was reported that former minister Rais Yatim said he was ready to take on the mantle of speaker but had yet to receive any such offer from the government.
On July 8, it was reported that Harapan secretariat Saifuddin Abdullah said the speaker candidates had been shortlisted, Takiyuddin said.
Then, on July 11, Sungai Petani MP Johari Abdul reportedly declined the offer to be Speaker, Takiyuddin added.
“Based on these facts, it is not possible for the notice for the naming of speaker to have been done by the government before July 2,” he said.
The candidate for speaker must agree to the candidacy and the Dewan Rakyat secretary must be notified in black and white no less than 14 days before the parliamentary sitting, Azalina insisted.
She said they are concerned that the procedural irregularity could be challenged in court.
When asked if they were considering any legal action, Azalina said they would have to check the veracity of the July 2nd nomination with Roosme first.
The BN and PAS lawmakers who had walked out of the Dewan Rakyat later re-entered the hall to complete their swearing-in.
Meanwhile, DAP’s Seremban MP Anthony Loke insisted they had submitted a notice to the secretary on July 2.
“You can check with the secretary.
“In the system, whatever notice and letters sent to the Dewan Rakyat secretary will be dated.
“So she has confirmed that the date they received the name of the speaker we just appointed was on July 2, which is 14 days before today. So it followed the Standing Orders,” he said.
-Mkini
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