Dewan Rakyat Speaker snubs Dr M, says no special sitting on Monday
PUCHONG: In an apparent snub to Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Dewan Rakyat Speaker announced that there will be no special sitting at the Parliament on Monday.
In a statement today, Speaker Tan Sri Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof said that the interim prime minister’s letter to the august house did not follow proper protocols and urged Mahathir to wait for the Yang-Pertuan Agong’s announcement.
“I have received a letter from Mahathir to call for a special Dewan Rakyat sitting on Monday (March 2). However, the letter did not follow Standing Order 11(3), by not stating the nature of business for the meeting to be convened.
“And based on the same Standing Order, I am the one empowered to issue notice on when the Dewan Rakyat should convene.
“In my view, we should also wait for the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to decide on who will become the next prime minister before calling for a special sitting.
“Therefore, there will be no special sitting at the Dewan Rakyat on Monday,” he said.
Two days ago, Mahathir announced that he would call for a special meeting at Dewan Rakyat to decide on the new government, claiming that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong could not decide on who commands the majority support of the MPs.
However, Mahathir’s announcement was criticised by both Pakatan Harapan and Muafakat Nasional who called upon the former not to usurp the powers of the monarch.
By G Vinod
