With all the politicking and drama surrounding Parliament sessions, it is easy to forget that the main function of Parliament is to enact laws. Yet, very little exposure is given on the actual lawmaking process. With this in mind, the Kuala Lumpur Young Lawyers Committee (“KLYLC”) organised a visit to Parliament on 15 June 2009 and 11 members of KLYLC attended the second session of the 12th Parliament.
Security was tight and we had to undergo security checks before we could enter the building. After a short briefing conducted by the Public Relations Officers, we were led to the public gallery in the House.
Parliament convened at 10am with the first order of the day; the swearing-in of newly elected Bukit Gantang Member of Parliament (MP), Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaludin . We were lucky to witness the shortest swearing in session in the history of Parliament when Nizar was ejected by the Speaker even before the congratulatory notes were delivered. Alongside Nizar, a few other opposition MPs were also ejected. There was chaos in the house with MPs from both sides shouting at each other.
When the situation eventually settled down, the Dewan Rakyat proceeded with the next order of the day; questions to ministers. MPs posed written questions to the Cabinet which was orally answered by the respective ministers. The questions were as follows:
1) Tenggara MP to the Prime Minister on the concept of 1Malaysia;
2) Permatang Pauh MP to the Minister of Home Affairs on the actions of the police during the Perak Assembly sitting of 07 May 2009;
3) Bintulu MP to the Prime Minister’s Department on the People’s Well-Being Program (SPKR) and the Housing Assistance Program (PBR); and
4) Bagan MP to the Minister of Information, Communications and Culture on conservation projects in
The ministers also answered supplementary oral questions by MPs.
Next, Ipoh Timur MP brought an emergency motion to set up a royal commission of inquiry into the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal. After deliberating on the motion, the Speaker rejected it on the basis that it was not urgent.
The next order of the day was the second reading of the National Service (Amendment) Bill 2008. We witnessed some of the initial debate on the said Bill before leaving the House.
At 12 noon, the the KLYLC paid a courtesy call on the Deputy Speaker of the Dewan Negara, Dato’ Ir Wong Foon Meng. The meeting was also attended by Senator Dato’ Yip Kum Fook.
Dato’ Ir Wong Foon Meng provided us with insights into the workings of a Parliamentary speaker. He informed us that proceedings in the Dewan Negara are more orderly than that of the Dewan Rakyat. Dato’ Ir Wong Foon Meng also took the liberty and answered all the questions posed by us
We then proceeded to attend a luncheon hosted by a group of MPs from Parti Keadilan Rakyat. During lunch, the KLYLC entered into a discussion with the MPs on several matters relating to Parliament.
The visit to Parliament ended at around 2pm. We left Parliament with a better understanding of the Parliamentary process.
KL Bar YLC