KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 7 — No minister or even the prime minister has the power to reject any motion for a no-confidence vote until it is tabled in Parliament as the matter is at the discretion of the Speaker, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia said today.

Pandikar added, however, that he has yet to receive any notice for such a motion and will only address the matter should he receive one.

“Have you heard anything about Parliament being in session? None, isn’t it? So I will cross the bridge when I come to it,” he said when asked to comment on the opposition’s plan on tabling a motion of no confidence against Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

“No minister can reject anything. The one with the authority when it comes to motions is the Speaker. Not even the prime minister, this must be understood,” he added, when met at the sidelines of the 36th General Assembly of the Asean Inter-Parliamentary Assembly in Kuala Lumpur today.

Pandikar’s statement comes following a report by local daily The Star that quoted minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Azalina Othman as saying that there was no need for a vote of no-confidence, adding that non-governmental organisations would have to wait for the next general election to make any changes in Putrajaya.

The Star also reported Azalina as saying in a statement that there was “no urgency” to push for a parliamentary vote of no confidence as there are many issues affecting the country that were outside the control of Putrajaya.

Today, Pandikar also said that there was no provision in Parliament’s Standing Order that allows an MP to table a motion of no confidence.

“The Parliamentary rules is under Article 62 or our constitution so therefore Parliament has the right to make its own procedures,” he said.

DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang has been calling for a vote of no confidence against Najib, which has gained support from the likes of former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

During his surprise appearance at the Bersih 4 rally last weekend, Dr Mahathir said MPs should move a no-confidence vote in Parliament as the only way to return to rule of law was to remove Najib from power.

He also called on Barisan Nasional (BN) lawmakers to take part in the vote against Najib, but added that the government should remain in the 13-party coalition’s hands afterwards.

In response, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz told Malay Mail Online in an interview that Dr Mahathir’s proposal is doomed to fail because the system currently does not allow a no-confidence vote against an individual.

The former de facto law minister also said that BN’s chief whip, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, will not allow such a move to take place and will ensure all BN MPs toe the line.

Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak had also warned that the entire BN government will fall if a no-confidence vote against the prime minister succeeds in Parliament.