YANG di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Muhammad V was poking fun at lawmakers when he told them not to run, said Dr Mahathir Mohamad today.

The prime minister said although the ruler made the remark in jest, guilty parties would have felt the heat.

“It was a joke. ‘Siapa makan cili, dia rasa pedas’,” said Dr Mahathir, using a popular Bahasa Malaysia idiom.

The Agong today told MPs to stay put for his royal address, following yesterday’s walkout by opposition lawmakers.

Dr Mahathir said there will be no restrictions imposed on MPs asking questions in Parliament.

“There will be no restrictions.

“They can talk about whatever they want to talk about.” – July 17, 2018.