8 theSun | FRIDAY JUNE 19 2009

news without borders

Zainon Ahmad at the Dewan Rakyat

in the land an issue so dear to his heart shouted their protests. So angry the Perak legislative assembly.
and the hearts of others. And through- were they their chairs would Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (PKR-

Missed chance to
out the week the Hansard made men-
tion of the Perak issue.
Or was it revenge? You caused the
pandemonium in the legislature of
my state on May 7 where the speaker
was forcibly changed and so now I am
here to cause pandemonium in your
probably have become missiles
had they not been fastened to the
floor.
The protests grew even louder
as several MPs from PKR, PAS
and DAP, most notably Datuk
Ngeh Koo Ham (DAP-Beruas)
Permatang Pauh) had asked the
original and the follow-up ques-
tion.
In responding to the ques-
tions, Home Minister Datuk Seri
Hishammuddin Hussein said the
police were there because they

debate May 7
WONDER what former Perak Mentri
Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar
Jamaluddin hoped to achieve by act-
ing like a common demonstrator and
raising such a storm in parliament
on Monday immediately after he was
sworn in as Bukit Gantang MP.
He must have known the august
house prohibits such behaviour – which
was one reason it was never attempted
before – but he probably did it out of
desperation to force the unresolved
issue of Perak back into the public eye.
Certainly for him it was an opportu-
nity not to be missed. The media were
there in full force to record the swear-
ing in, and being the first day of a new
meeting, almost all the government
bigwigs from Prime Minister Datuk
Seri Najib Abdul Razak, his deputy,
ministers and most of the deputy min-
isters were in their seats.
Still, why blemish the house by
bringing in something from the streets,
when there are other ways to bring to
the attention of the highest legislature
legislature.
But he had not reckoned with the
ever watchful and combative speaker,
Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia, who had
amply demonstrated his intolerance of
tardy behaviour on the part of the MPs
since his election last year.
The speaker’s ire was aroused when
Nizar after signing the oath of allegiance
to the Federal Constitution slipped a
headband bearing the words “Bubar
DUN” (dissolve the state assembly)
around his songkok, turned to face
the public gallery and shouted “hidup,
hidup rakyat” (long live the people).
As all the movements were executed
with such practised ease and speed, it
was only after he had finished shouting
his slogan that the stunned front and
backbenchers found their voices and
and Nga Kor Ming (DAP-Taip-
ing), and their supporters in
the public gallery repeated the
slogan as they slipped on similar
headbands.
Above the din, Pandikar Amin
was heard shouting to Nizar to
remove his headband and to
return to his seat and told those
wearing the headbands to leave
the house. Shortly after he also
told Nizar to leave as he was the
one – a former mentri besar at
that – who started it all.
Having done what he set out
to do, Nizar left parliament with
the others without so much as a
whimper. His stunt held up the
business of the house for about
20 minutes but Nizar certainly
made history.
On Tuesday, two bills – the
Destitute Persons Bill (Amend-
ment) Bill and the Malaysian
Timber Industry Board Bill
(Incorporation) (Validation) 2009
– were withdrawn without any
explanation. They would have
gone unnoticed if Lim Kit Siang
(DAP-Ipoh Timur) had not stood
up to say that it demonstrated a
lack of seriousness on the part of
the government.
After being suspended for
two days for the stunt he pulled
on Monday, Nizar was back yes-
terday even before the speaker
and his entourage trooped in at
10am.
He sat quietly in his seat in
the furthest corner of the house
next to Datuk Chua Soon Bui (in-
dependent-Tawau) and left only
15 minutes before the 90-minute
question time ended.
Had he not been sent out of
the house on Monday he could
have tried to ask a supplemen-
tary question on the May 7 affair
where several policemen entered
were invited into the assembly
by the newly elected speaker
R. Ganesan after the ousted
speaker V. Sivakumar refused
to vacate his seat. He also said
that the Pakatan Rakyat parties
were welcome to sue him and
the inspector-general of police if
they were not satisfied with his
explanation.
Nizar could also raise the
Perak affair in as many times
as the number of bills pre-
sented for debate in the House
regardless of its relevance. For
instance, during the debate on
the National Service Training
(Amendment) Bill 2008 Datuk
Ibrahim Ali (independent-Pasir
Mas), Datuk Bung Moktar Radin
(BN-Kinabatangan) and Datuk
Mohamad Shahrum Osman (BN-
Lipis) lambasted him for what he
did after his swearing-in.
Former prime minister Tun
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (BN-
Kepala Batas) entered the house
on Monday and managed to catch
the tail end of the demonstration.
There was some cheering as he
walked to his designated seat
among his former cabinet col-
leagues. He left 10 minutes after
question time ended.
The almost full house on
Monday morning was a stark
contrast to the attendance after
the lunch recess on Tuesday and
Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Pandikar Amin
noticed that the quorum of 26
MPs was about 10 short when he
walked into the house at 2.30pm
and ordered the bell to be rung
a second time. The next day just
after the speaker sat down, Dr
Lo’Lo’ Mohamad Ghazali (PAS-
Titiwangsa) pointed out that
there was no quorum. Again the
bell rang a second time.

briefs
Explain RM1.2b payment, Ong told
LIM KIT SIANG (DAP-Ipoh Timur) wants Transport Minister Datuk Seri
Ong Tee Keat to explain the approval of a RM1.2 billion payment for the
Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) project.
In a statement, he said a website (pkfz.blogspot.com) had exhibited
exchange of letters to show that Ong had on May 10 as transport
minister pushed for the payment of variation of costs to PKFZ’s turnkey
developer, Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd.
Earlier, Lim also launched a PKFZ website as part of the DAP’s
effort to get to the bottom of the “scandal of scandals” in the nation’s
history.
He said Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman Datuk Seri Azmi
Khalid’s decision not to step down in the inquiry of the PKFZ scandal
had made the website (pkfz-scandal.org) even more imperative and all
who have information about the scandal are welcomed.
“I am very disappointed with Azmi’s decision despite a clear conflict
of interest as he was a cabinet minister from 2004 to 2008 when the
cabinet took many critical decisions, resulting in the ballooning of the
PKFZ scandal from RM1.1 billion in 2002 to RM4.6 bllion in 2007 and
now RM7.5 billion and heading towards an astronomical cost of RM12.5
billion,” he told a press conference in the Parliament lobby.

Sedition Act still relevant, says Hisham

THE government has no intention to abolish the Sedition Act 1984
as it is still relevant, said Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin
Hussein.
“Provisions under this act enable the government to take
action against individuals or organisations found threatening
security and public order.
“Those who do this through statements or publications can
be charged under Section 4 (1) of the Act if there is adequate
evidence,” he told Karpal Singh (DAP-Bukit Gelugor) in a written
reply.
Karpal had asked whether the government was ready to get rid
of the Act which was drafted for the purpose of curbing objections
against the formation of the Malayan Union suggested by the then
British government.