Heed King's Reprimand, Firm Action On Members Of Parliament For Touching On 3R In Parliament Session - Speaker

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 19 (Bernama) -- All Members of Parliament must pay serious attention to the reprimand of His Majesty, Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, especially regarding the ban on playing up racial, religious and royal (3R) sentiments, including in the debate in Dewan Rakyat, stressed Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul.

Johari stressed that he would not compromise and strict action would be taken against any member of Parliament who crossed the red line set in accordance with the King’s directive, in order to preserve the harmony and authority of the Parliamentary institution.

In this regard, he reminded all members of Parliament not to arbitrarily take advantage of the 3R issue or engage in politics in debates, even though they are protected by parliamentary privileges.

“I and the deputy speakers will ensure that the 3R issue is not used at will because it can invite misunderstandings and create an atmosphere of disharmony among the people and the leadership.

“If I act, do not blame me because His Majesty has himself stressed that the 3R issue cannot be used for personal purposes or to politicise matters that should not be politicised in the Dewan Rakyat,” he told Bernama and RTM in the lobby of the Parliament Building here today.

The King in his Royal Address at the Opening Ceremony of the First Meeting of the Fifth Session of the 15th Parliament today issued a strong warning against the issue of corruption, and ordered that action be taken to combat the crime on a large scale, as well as to deal effectively with acts that touch on the 3R issue.

In the meantime, Johari wanted members of Parliament to focus the debate on key issues including the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), rather than getting bogged down in trivial issues that waste conference time.

“Give constructive views and suggestions to develop the country. Leave the debate on peripheral issues and show maturity by using a clear mind, not emotions,” he said.

He said institutional reform measures would continue to ensure that the proceedings were more orderly and focused, including increasing the number of questions to give more space to members of Parliament to raise the people's issues.

Johari also announced that starting this year, the Special Chamber of the Dewan Rakyat would move to a larger conference hall, thus allowing more guests including students to follow the proceedings.

He said the Special Chamber focused specifically on representatives of the people and the government to discuss local issues, in connection with which the larger conference hall would allow Members of Parliament to bring residents of their respective constituencies to enable them to hear debates on local issues for themselves.

“I believe this measure will not only increase transparency but also strengthen the relationship between representatives of the people and the people in their constituencies,” he said.

-- BERNAMA