Dewan Rakyat speaker Azhar Azizan Harun has defended the 10-minute break which was held before the start of bloc voting on the Budget 2020 reallocation in Parliament yesterday.
Azhar (above) said he already informed the Lower House of this break duration last week and had not received any negative feedback.
"When I announced it last week I did not get any negative feedback from any MPs," he told the Dewan Rakyat today.
Azhar's announcement on the 10-minute break can be read on pages 47 and 48 of the Parliament Hansard for Aug 11.
The speaker reiterated today, that the 10-minute break after the bell was rung for two minutes, was to enable MPs to make their way from the MPs office block to the Dewan Rakyat. The two buildings are about a minute's walk apart.
However, the 10-minute break also takes into account Covid-19 physical distancing measures, such as elevators being limited to just five people at a time, instead of the regular capacity of 15.
"When I tried to explain this yesterday, my voice was drowned by the 'excited' voices of MPs eager to take part in the bloc vote," Azhar said in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Yesterday MPs called for a bloc vote on the budget reallocation bill, which sought to facilitate the restructuring of the cabinet following Perikatan Nasional's rise to power.
When the 10-minute break took place, several MPs protested, asking if this was a purposeful delay because there were not enough government MPs in the Dewan Rakyat.
The bill passed 111 against 106. - Mkini
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