The Madani government appears to have finally landed on a solution that balances calls for Parliament to vet candidates to key public offices, while appeasing an increasingly influential monarchy.
As revealed yesterday, the latest rework of the bill to separate the roles of the attorney-general and public prosecutor will now give Parliament authority on who gets to become public prosecutor.
Previously, the bill suggested that the names be nominated by the Judicial and Legal Service Commission (JLSC) and that Parliament would only get to weigh in, without having any decisions as binding.
Instead, the bill now says that JLSC will propose names to the Dewan Rakyat, and that a special select committee will vet the candidates.
Only those approved by MPs can then be nominated by the JLSC to be presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, who will then make the final call.
The latest proposal - which will be debated in the Dewan Rakyat at noon - has won over holdouts among government backbenchers who previously said they would not vote for the bill if Parliament is not allowed to vet public prosecutor candidates.
‘Positive improvements’
Subang MP Wong Chen expressed satisfaction and gratitude over the changes.
"The latest AG-PP amendments are better and acceptable to the MPs (including myself) that demanded better parliamentary involvement," he said on Facebook yesterday.
"Not sucking up and fighting for improvements from within can result in positive change.
"I want to thank Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof, (Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for Law and Institutional Reforms) Azalina Othman (Said) and the (Attorney-General's Chambers) for their positive support for our requests. It is not every day that backbenchers get to positively improve a bill!" he added.
Wong was among seven MPs who objected to the previous proposal.
With their support, and assuming the government can ensure everyone on its side turns up this time, Putrajaya should be able to get the 148 votes necessary to pass the constitutional amendment bill.
Support from Perikatan Nasional MPs on this latest revision is unclear. MPs have yet to respond to Malaysiakini's request for comment.
Royal influence
One key reason this bill has undergone multiple revisions before arriving at this solution may be linked to the royal institution.
In defending the previous version of the bill where Parliament could only give an opinion on candidates, Azalina had said that the law should not restrict the Agong's powers to make appointments to public office.
This signals a growing departure from constitutional principles where the king acts on the advice of the government.
Part of this is due to the growing political influence of the monarchy, following the political instability of the early 2020s.
When the 15th general election resulted in a hung Parliament, it was the royal influence of the previous Agong, Pahang's Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, that helped secure support for Anwar Ibrahim to become prime minister of a coalition government.
It is a fact that both Anwar's Pakatan Harapan and rival-turned-partner BN like to expound, saying that this is a king's government.
The current Agong, Johor's Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, has also made clear that he wishes to flex his royal muscles and influence in deciding on key appointments.
As Sultan Ibrahim will remain king by the time of the next general election, it is in all politicians' interest to stay on his good side.
MACC chief next?
If the proposal for the attorney-general, public prosecutor separation bill is approved with royal assent, it will provide a midpoint that would strengthen Parliament's influence without undermining the royals.
This would then provide a formula for appointments to other key public offices - especially that of the MACC chief.
MPs from both sides of the aisle have been demanding that Parliament be given a say in who becomes the top graftbuster, calls which grew louder after the previous chief Azam Baki was mired in scandals. - Mkini
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