It will be the cabinet’s responsibility to advise the Yang di-Pertuan Agong whether or not the emergency should be extended, said de facto law minister Takiyuddin Hassan.
He said this in response to a report quoting Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah as saying that only the king had the discretion to extend the emergency.
Noor Hisham was cited as saying that in a Malay Mail report yesterday in which he also said that once the emergency was lifted, there will have to be three by-elections and the Sarawak state election.
Commenting on the report, Takiyuddin said the king had acted on the cabinet’s advice as per the Federal Constitution when the state of emergency was declared in January to enable the government to combat Covid-19.
“As such, the question of whether the emergency will end on the said date (Aug 1) or not at the discretion of His Majesty the Yang di-Pertuan Agong as was raised should not have arisen,” he said in a statement today.
“It is the cabinet’s responsibility to continue advising the king, as the head of state, on deciding regarding the terms of the emergency.
“This will be done after taking into account all current conditions and related factors including public safety, social aspects and the national economy,” he added.
Suspending all elections had been one of the reasons cited to justify declaring the state of emergency. This after the Sabah state elections last year contributed to the third wave of infections nationwide.
The government is currently making efforts to fast track the vaccination process in Sarawak ahead of the state election to avoid a repeat of what happened to its neighbour.
The king has been meeting with various political leaders last week to get their views on the management of the Covid-19 pandemic and will be convening the Conference of Rulers on Wednesday. - Mkini
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