Former minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar is said to be nominated as the next Dewan Negara speaker candidate.
He is to replace Rais Yatim, whose term as Senate speaker concluded yesterday.
Several government sources confirmed with Malaysiakini that Wan Junaidi’s name was chosen as the coalition government’s candidate.
He was the Dewan Rakyat deputy speaker from 2008 until 2013.
“The government has chosen (Wan Junaidi). There will be an announcement this Monday,” a source told Malaysiakini.
The source also informed that Wan Junaidi’s nomination for the position was agreed upon as he had expertise in the field of law, in addition to his vast experience over the years.
Wan Junaidi, 78, did not contest in the 15th general election after being an MP for seven terms since 1990.
At the time this report was written, Malaysiakini is made to understand that no other names were nominated to fill the position of Dewan Negara speaker.
Meanwhile, several sources from BN said that the government will nominate Umno leader Nur Jazlan Mohamed for the deputy speaker of Dewan Negara position.
The seat is now vacant after its incumbent Mohamad Ali Mohamad’s tenure as a senator also expired.
Nur Jazlan was the Pulai lawmaker for three terms since 2004. However, he lost the seat in the last two general elections in 2018 and 2022.
Nur Jazlan’s nomination is said to have “come as a shock”.
MCA, MIC lose out again?
This comes after speculations were rife that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was ready to give the position to an MCA or MIC representative. Both parties are BN component parties.
No representatives from these parties were appointed as cabinet members in the coalition government.
“There are indeed discussions between the party leadership with the prime minister as well as with MCA and MIC representatives.
“It was informed that Anwar was ready to consider (to give) the position to (a representative from) the BN component parties.
“But with the latest development, it seems that Umno is becoming more greedy and is not ready to share positions with other BN component parties,” said a source from MIC.
MCA has three members – Koh Nai Kwong, Lim Pay Hen and Ti Lian Ker - in the Dewan Negara, while MIC is represented by four leaders – Nelson Renganathan, C Sivarraajh, S Vell Paari and Mohamed Haniffa Abdullah.
DAP senator nominated?
In a related development, DAP senator Kesavadas A Achyuthan Nair was also said to be on the list of candidates for the deputy speaker post.
However, sources from DAP said its party did not put forth Kesavadas’ name.
“It appears that there are other Dewan Negara members who proposed Kesavadas’ name,” he said.
He added that Kesavadas – from Negeri Sembilan – still needs to meet another condition before being considered by other senators, which is to be supported by other senators.
If more than one name is being submitted, the voting process to pick the winner will be in written form.
Meanwhile, PN had put forth Bersatu information chief Razali Idris as its deputy speaker candidate.
“PN did not nominate anyone for the speaker position, but (to fill) the vacancy of the deputy speaker position, we submitted Razali’s name,” said a source from Bersatu. - Mkini
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