PETALING JAYA: An MP has urged Dewan Rakyat Speaker Azhar Harun to place restrictions on the number of lobbyists and people in ministers’ entourages attending parliamentary meetings.
Wong Shu Qi said Covid-19 SOPs were non-negotiable but not reason enough to prevent journalists from reporting on parliamentary proceedings, especially the annual federal budget.
“To use Covid-19 as an excuse to censure the media is not only irresponsible but atrocious and regressive,” she said in a statement.
Last week it was reported that only certain media companies would be allowed into Parliament House to cover the budget meetings of the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara from Nov 2 to Dec 23.
The budget will be tabled in the Dewan Rakyat on Nov 6.
Among the media outlets allowed to cover include RTM, Bernama, TV AlHijrah, TV3, New Straits Times, Astro Awani, Utusan, Sinar Harian and The Star.
Online media were not included. Wong argued that online media remained the major source of news for Malaysians. “It does not make sense then that media outlets such as Malaysiakini, Free Malaysia Today and The Malaysian Insight were prevented from covering events at Parliament.”
Rather than restricting attendance to only 15 media outlets, the Speaker should instead limit the number of journalists on duty from each media outlet or implement protocols such as social distancing.
There should be restrictions on the size of ministers’ entourages, she said. At the last parliamentary meeting, ministers and deputy ministers were followed by a trail of “large groups of people”.
Parliament, Wong added, should also be wary of lobbyists and political followers crowding the august building.
“Hence, if the Speaker felt that there is a need to restrict the number of people coming into parliament, then cut down the ministers’ entourages, not the fourth estate.” - FMT
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