KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 16 — Newly-elected Speaker Datuk Johari Abdul wants to bring back the Parliamentary Services Act to ensure greater independence in Parliament, The Star reported today.
He said that meetings have already been conducted with the prime minister to discuss the proposed law.
“Senate President Senator Tan Sri Rais Yatim and I met Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim recently to brief him on the proposed Parliamentary Services Act.
“The papers are ready and should be brought to the Cabinet anytime soon,” he was quoted as saying.
First enacted in 1963, the Parliamentary Services Act gives Parliament the right to conduct its own administration, staffing, and controlling its finances.
The law was repealed in 1992 by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad during his first stint as prime minister, which led parliamentary affairs to fall under the purview of the Prime Minister’s Department.
The previous administration agreed to revive the law, but before the Bill could be tabled in Dewan Rakyat last year, the Parliament was dissolved to pave the way for the 15th general election.
Johari said the law must be revived to ensure Parliament’s independence from the executive branch.
Under the proposed law, he said both the Senate president and Speaker of the House will oversee parliamentary decisions.
“We may have a Parliament house, but the finances come from the finance minister, while the Public Services Department does staffing.
“So what independence are you talking about? We feel that the independence of Parliament must be seen to be functioning.
“It will definitely make the separation of powers crystal clear and not merely something stated in the textbooks,” he added.
Meanwhile, he also plans to give the Parliamentary Special Select Committees (PSSC) a larger role of supplementing Cabinet members in making decisions on issues affecting the daily lives of the rakyat.
“At present, Cabinet ministers rely a lot on bureaucrats, and they don’t have time to hold engagements at every phase.
“The committees will work hand-in-hand with the ministers and complement the Cabinet,” he said, adding that they can do so by providing additional information to the ministers.
He said that the current parliamentary committee was empowered to call on “anyone from every walk of life” to give their views on a particular subject matter.
He added he would review the current committee line-up to ensure that “everyday issues” faced by the rakyat were addressed.
“We will have a relook so that the committees will be more topical to ensure that every aspect of our lives is taken care of,” he said.
There are currently 10 bi-partisan special select committees including education, fundamental liberty and constitutional rights, finance and economy, women and children affairs and social development, agencies under the Prime Minister’s Department and health, science and innovation.
Apart from these, ad hoc special select committees were also set up previously on anti-hopping and generational end-game laws on smoking.
In the name of transparency, Johari said it might soon be compulsory for select committees to hold press conferences after completing any task on an issue.
“The media will be allowed to ask the committee questions on their findings and recommendations so that it will be made public. We want to show that we have nothing to hide,” he said.
Names of the committee members will be proposed by their respective parties before the Dewan Rakyat meeting commences on February 13.
Johari said that on the day of the meeting, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will also be set up.
On the question of who would lead the PAC, he said the position will go to the Opposition based on an agreement made in 2018.
