KUALA LUMPUR: No one, not even the prime minister, can reject a motion before it is tabled, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia said yesterday, as Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders dismissed talk of a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Pandikar said that only he, in his capacity as the speaker for the lower house of Parliament, could decide whether to accept or reject a motion.

“No minister can reject any [motion]. The one who is empowered on matters related to motions is the speaker.

“No one, including the prime minister. This ought to be understood,” he told reporters at the 36th general assembly of the Asean Inter-Parliamentary gathering in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Pandikar was asked whether a minister could reject proposals for a motion before it is tabled, following news of the possibility of a vote of no-confidence against Najib, who is under fire over scandals involving state investment vehicle 1Malaysia Development Bhd, as well as a US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) contribution from an unknown Middle Eastern donor into his personal accounts ahead of the 2013 general election.

Minister in charge of Parliament Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said rejected the proposal for such a motion, saying that Najib still commands the support of the majority of members of parliament (MPs).

Last Friday, Azalina was reported as saying a no-confidence motion against the prime minister could not be tabled since most of the MPs were behind the prime minister.

She later told Malay daily Sinar Harian, however, that what she meant was such a motion had never been brought to the Dewan Rakyat before.

PKR said that an additional 25 parliamentarians from BN were needed to help the opposition bloc support a motion forcing Najib to step down. — The Malaysian Insider

This article first appeared in digitaledge Daily, on September 8, 2015.