Puad chastises Shahidan over response to Umno’s 14-day Parliament ultimatum
KUALA LUMPUR, June 23 — Umno Supreme Council member Datuk Mohd Puad Zarkashi has today chastised his party colleague Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim for criticising the party’s ultimatum in demanding for Parliament to reconvene within two weeks.
Mohd Puad said, while it was common knowledge that the Dewan Rakyat Speaker needed to provide a 28-day notice to convene Parliament according to Standing Order 11(2), he pointed out that the Dewan Rakyat Speaker can do away with the 28-day notice in cases that are deemed to be “of urgency” under Standing Order 9(2)(a) and 11(3).
This comes after Shahidan took a veiled jab at Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi after the latter issued the government an ultimatum to reconvene Parliament within 14 days of June 21.
“It is obvious that both the Perikatan Nasional government and the Emergency have failed, including the suspension of Parliament, in the hope of reducing ongoing Covid-19 cases.
“So what is the problem of fulfilling the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s decree for Parliament to reconvene as soon as possible?
“Regardless of the interpretation of the 14-day period, Umno acts for the people. Umno acts in line with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s decree to reconvene Parliament as soon as possible,” he said in a statement here.
The Arau MP, who was removed as Perlis Umno chief in April, had yesterday advised against reprimanding the government openly and claimed it was “incorrect” to state a 14-day period.
“And if you want to give your views, make sure they are accurate,” Shahidan was quoted as saying.
Mohd Puad therefore said Shahidan’s claims regarding the 14-day issue were nothing but a form of threat made up to gain political mileage for himself.
He also challenged Shahidan to air his views on both Parliament Standing Orders 9(2)(a) and 11(3), before issuing a word of caution to not twist the 14-day ultimatum.
This came after Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, following a meeting with the Conference of Rulers last week, decreed that Parliament should meet as soon as possible.
The Rulers had said this is to ensure issues pertaining to the Emergency Ordinances and other government measures that have been implemented without going through Parliament can be debated by the MPs.
On June 20, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced the formation of a committee made up of government and Opposition lawmakers who will look into the important aspects of reconvening Parliament before the next session is called.
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