MARCH 23 — Article 102 of the Federal Constitution states:
Power to authorise expenditure on account or for unspecified purposes
102. Parliament shall have power in respect of any financial year
(a) before the passing of the Supply Bill, to authorise by law expenditure for part of the year;
(b) to authorise by law expenditure for the whole or part of the year otherwise than in accordance with Articles 99 to 101, if oweing to the magnitude or indefinite character of any service or to circumstances of unusual urgency it appears to Parliament to be desirable to do so.
Article 102(b) speaks for itself.
Article 102 has nothing to do with Supply Bill's passed earlier for the respective ministry's or government body's purposes.
The framers of the Constitution had in their minds circumstances such as the present when deciding to give Parliament additional power to authorise expenditure owing to circumstances of unusual urgency.
Malaysia is now in such a circumstance. There is no dispute on that.
Why then has not the Parliament convened? Other countries are sitting, albeit with safety measures of course.
Therefore, Parliament has a constitutional duty to sit and pass urgent law for expenditure that follow in circumstances of unusual urgency.
It was announced just a while ago that additional RM500 million would be given to the Health Ministry for safety protective equipment.
Why is it that they are given ad hoc allocations?
It should be the other way around. Doctors and nurses should get their tools on demand. It is the government machinery that should be scrambling to obtain it for them. Why then do we have a transport minister and human resource minister for in these critical times?
Maybe our dear ministers are not aware but there is such a thing called government mandatory directive during emergency. Use your powers to issue directives.
That is why the government has a Constitution duty to spend during unusual urgency.
Asking people to take their own money from their EPF savings is not spending. It's saving.
Ultimately, the Constitution has empowered Parliament to spend, in other words do what it takes to make sure our doctors and nurses get their equipment, and actually it must necessarily include food and transport and place to sleep.
* Puthan Perumal is an advocate and solicitor
** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
