The Malaysian Insight

AFTER months of controversy, the government will table the seven emergency ordinances – introduced during the state of emergency – for debate and approval in the Dewan Rakyat, according to today’s order paper.

This will be in accordance with Article 150 (3) of the Federal Constitution, which states that all emergency ordinates must be tabled in both houses of Parliament, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said in the paper.

This is the first time that the ordinances, that were approved this year, will be tabled.

On January 11, former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced the Emergency Proclamation to give the Perikatan Nasional government more powers to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

During this time, the Muhyiddin administration approved seven ordinances without legislative scrutiny or approval.

These included laws to increase the fines for breaking standard operating procedures (SOP), allowing federal and state governments to use government funds without legislative approval, and for the government to second private hospital facilities into help fight the pandemic.

However, just days before the proclamation was due to expire on August 1, former minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (parliament and law) Takiyuddin Hassan (Kota Bharu-PN) surprised Parliament by saying that the cabinet had cancelled the ordinances on July 21.

In an immediate response to Takiyuddin’s bombshell, Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah said that he was unaware of the cancellation and had explicitly told the government that the ordinances should be tabled in accordance with the Federal Constitution.

Caught out by the situation, Perikatan Nasional then cancelled the last two days of the five-day Dewan Rakyat sitting.

Following which, 14 Umno MPs announced that they had lost confidence in Muhyiddin he resigned on August 16. – October 11, 2021.