Najib accuses Muhyiddin of main wayang
(FMT) – A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) that the government will take the necessary steps to reconvene Parliament is nothing but a “charade”, says Najib Razak.
Following the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s call yesterday to reconvene Parliament as soon as possible, the PMO said the government had taken note of the palace’s views and would take necessary steps based on the Constitution and laws.
“This statement is a charade as long as he (Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin) does not send a notice for Parliament to sit,” the former prime minister said in a Facebook post.
“Under normal circumstances when not in an Emergency, the prime minister must give at least 28 days’ notice before a sitting of Parliament can be held.
“However, during the Emergency, the government can waive this requirement by issuing emergency ordinances like they did to increase the fine (for not complying with Covid-19 SOPs) tenfold, take over private facilities for government use, and enforce a fake news law with a fine of RM100,000.”
A statement from the palace yesterday said the King was aware of the important role of Parliament in discussing matters related to Covid-19 and wanted it to be reconvened as soon as possible.
This was followed by a joint statement by the Malay Rulers that there was no need for the nation to remain under a state of emergency after Aug 1. They also called for state assemblies to reopen.
In an interview with Harakahdaily last night, law minister Takiyuddin Hassan pointed out that the King did not set a date on when Parliament should reconvene, only that it should be done “as soon as possible”.
“I just want to see them have the intention and loyalty to follow the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and Malays Rulers’ orders,” Najib said, without mentioning any names.
“Everything else is just an excuse.”
PKR’s Wong Chen also criticised the PMO’s statement, calling for Muhyiddin to “stop insulting people’s intelligence with more empty and meaningless statements”.
“Was this statement written by a comedian?” the Subang MP asked in a Facebook post.
“All we want to know is the PM’s definition of ‘immediate’ and what is his proposed date to reconvene Parliament.”
