Dato Sri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar
KUCHING (Sept 3): The re-introduction of the Parliamentary Service Act (PSA) is among the three main issues that have been seriously considered in the quest for parliamentary transformation, said Dato Sri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar
The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) said he would submit a report on the matter to the Cabinet for endorsement.
He said the PSA needs to be revived or re-introduced to give independence to Parliament.
He noted that this is consistent with what has been done by other parliaments internationally.
“This is based on Article 62 (Parliamentary procedure) and Article 63 (Privileges of Parliament) under the Federal Constitution,” he said in a statement today.
Wan Junaidi said he had discussed Parliamentary Transformation with Dewan Negara Speaker Senator Tan Sri Datuk Seri Utama Dr Rais Yatim and Dewan Rakyat Speaker Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun yesterday.
He revealed the three main issues were discussed along with a proposal to create a new Act of Parliament to replace The Houses of Parliament Privileges and Powers Act 1952 (Revised 1988).
“The current Act must be replaced because this Act was created in 1952, under the 1952 parliamentary environment. It was not even a parliamentary environment, as it was created while Malaya was under Federal Agreement 1948.
“The existing Act is completely obsolete and outdated and no longer suitable for the political landscape in the 21st century,” he said.
According to Wan Junaidi, instead of just amending the Act, it would be better to come up with a new law which is more comprehensive, inclusive, and complete.
He said this would also follow in the footsteps of most Commonwealth countries including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and India.
Wan Junaidi said the meeting also concurred that discussions on more amendments to the present Standing Orders and Rules of the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara would be held.
“This move is crucial in order to suit the proposed new Act of parliament and the re-introduction of the Parliamentary Service Act.
“While there have been amendments made from time to time, many of these rules are a relic of the Federal Agreement 1948, which was only amended in 1956 for the independence of Malaya in 1957.
“It was further amended in 1959 to create a basis for Standing Order and Rules of Dewan Negara and Dewan Rakyat. However, many of these rules are not able to accommodate many modern things in Parliament,” he explained.
He pointed out that many Commonwealth countries have been making the necessary amendments to their rules and procedures in Parliament to suit current times and, in the quest for parliamentary reforms, it is crucial for lawmakers to make more changes and improvements to the rules that may no longer be suitable today.
He believes that the amendments made should also focus on efforts to empower the Parliamentary committee.
“I am indeed happy to inform that both the Yang di-Pertua Dewan Negara and Yang di-Pertua Dewan Rakyat took the proposal positively and are, in fact, prepared to take on the lead role in the transformation of our Parliament.
“In line with this, we have also agreed to form a joint-committee between Parliament and my ministry to ensure that the various proposals discussed can be executed swiftly,” he added.