ELECTION reform watchdog Bersih 2.0 has urged all MPs to vote against a motion to remove Dewan Rakyat Speaker Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof and his deputy, Nga Kor Ming. 

Bersih also urged all Malaysians to support Ariff as the speaker by signing an online petition.

“Bersih 2.0 staunchly opposes Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s motion to remove Ariff as the speaker and his deputy on the first day of the next parliamentary sitting on July 13.

“The other deputy speaker Rashid Hasnon, who is an MP aligned to Muhyiddin, is unaffected by the move. Such a motion to remove a speaker of the house mid-term is unprecedented in Malaysia as the position is usually only vacated when Parliament is dissolved, upon death or resignation,” Bersih said in a statement.

The coalition said Ariff, who is not an MP, retired from active party politics upon his appointment as speaker in 2018 and credited him with “transforming his office with impartiality and a genuine appreciation for multi-partisanship.”

“We hereby demand all MPs to vote against the motion to remove speaker Ariff to continue the reforms he has embarked, instead of replacing him with a partisan character and in conjunction with our call to defend parliamentary reform.”

Muhyiddin submitted a motion on June 26 to replace Ariff and Nga.

Today, The Malaysian Insight reported that Muhyiddin’s Perikatan Nasional government is planning to replace Ariff with Election Commission (EC) chairman Azhar Azizan Harun.

Bersih said more parliamentary reforms should be introduced such as forming an independent parliamentary service so that parliament staff are not controlled by the executive; as well as the recognition of the main opposition’s shadow cabinet by allocating resources and access to government information.

Bersih also called for a weekly prime minister’s question (PMQ) time so that the chief executive is personally answerable to the house.

There should also be special slots for non-governmental business and private members’ bills so that the opposition and government backbenchers can play more constructive roles. – June 30, 2020.