SHAH ALAM, 18 Apr: The Parliament has been urged to cast away fear in bringing up public interest issues to be debated in the Dewan Rakyat.
The Speaker of the Selangor State Assembly (DNS), Hannah Yeoh, said that the Parliament should be more courageous like the DNS, which allows the opposition to bring up a motion to be debated openly.
She said that open debate in the conference hall should not be avoided, especially with the maturity of the representatives and the people today.
“I allow the debate (the opposition’s motion) to be carried out because we all want to see if there is an issue, and we should not be afraid to face it and it can be debated.
“This is the first time we allowed motions from the opposition (in Selangor) and I hope Parliament will discuss hot and important issues without fear.
“We are all now mature, the people are mature, the elected representatives are also mature. So there is nothing to be afraid of debating,” she said in a press conference at the DNS lobby today.
Yesterday, the state opposition presented two motions, brought up by the Opposition Leader, Datuk Shamsudin Lias and Budiman Mohd Zohdi (Sungai Panjang), however it was not agreed upon after debated.
Shamsuddin brought up the motion urging the State Government to stop the water rationing in Selangor and its surrounding area. While Budiman brought up the motion urging to take a stand against the actions of the Coalition of Malaysian NGOs (COMANGO).
The Chief Minister, Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, in his response yesterday, said that the State Government cannot withdraw the water rationing directive at this time because the raw water levels in several dams are still low.
Abdul Khalid said that if the ration is stopped immediately, the water level in the dams will decrease faster, causing the lifespan of the water level to be shorter and will not last long.
Meanwhile, the Comango motion was rejected because it has nothing to do with the DNS jurisdiction in making a ruling against a non-governmental organisation (NGO).
“The State Government does not need to state any stand because it is not applicable. If in court, this (motion) can be rejected and would be subject to a cost,” said the Senior Executive Councillor, Datuk Teng Chang Khim, representing the Chief Minister.
