Friday 29 Mar 2024
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(Sept 7): No one, not even the prime minister, can reject a motion before it is tabled, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia said today, as ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders dismissed talk of a no-confidence motion against 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 today.

Pandikar was asked whether a minister could reject proposals for a motion before it was tabled, following news of the possibility of a vote of no confidence against the embattled Najib, who is currently under fire over scandals involving his brainchild, state investment vehicle 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), as well as a RM2.6 billion donation 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 had rejected the proposal for such a motion, saying that Najib still commanded the support of the majority of MPs.

Last Friday, Azalina was reported 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.

Opposition party PKR said that an additional 25 parliamentarians from the ruling Barisan Nasional were needed to help the opposition bloc support a motion forcing Najib to step down.

Najib's supporter-turned-staunch-critic, former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, has also urged BN federal lawmakers to throw their support behind a no-confidence motion, adding that if all BN MPs supported such a move, the ruling coalition would still remain in power as it held the majority of seats in the Dewan Rakyat.

In recent days, however, Najib has dismissed the idea, saying that "people's power" to chose a new government only applied to elections, and not to other measures in between polls.

Minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak has also described people's power outside elections as "a fallacy". – The Malaysian Insider

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