PARLIAMENT will finally have a proper sitting today. The session will be for 25 days and focus on issues related to Covid-19, in particular, the supplementary bill related to the Prihatin Economic Stimulus Package and the Covid-19 bill. 

So far, the government has received at least 395 proposals  to draft the Covid-19 bill. Some of the issues to be addressed in the bill include contractual obligations and financial burdens involving companies and individuals. 

Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz had said the Covid-19 bill will likely mirror similar legislation in  Singapore and New Zealand. However, to date, information on the Malaysian Covid-19 bill remains unclear and this will surely open a wider debate on what the Malaysian government is looking to adopt.  

New Zealand’s Covid-19 Response (Urgent Management Measures) Legislation Bill is said to be the best reference for the Malaysian government to draft the Covid-19 bill. The New Zealand government’s proposed legislation touches on the country’s socio-economic recovery and amendments to five laws on education, pandemic preparation, information, local government, and residential tenancies. 

However, a Covid-19 bill will face some challenges and issues in the Malaysian parliament. First, the Malaysian government’s delay in tabling a bill to address the socio-economic impact of the virus outbreak. As of recently, the Bill of Implementation to reduce the impact of Covid-19 is said to be enforced latest by September 2020. 

This is different from countries such as New Zealand and Singapore, which have debated and passed the Covid-19 bill as early as pandemic started in March.

Second, lawmakers will have limited time and space to review the Covid-19 bill. Although the Dewan Rakyat will convene for 25 days, the allocation of time for lawmakers to review the Covid-19 bill is estimated to be not more than 10 days. Sixteen days are allocated to debate the Royal Address of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and a further nine days are needed to present bills and government motions. In this case, will the Covid-19 bill be tabled in the Dewan Rakyat through a select committee review? 

Best approach to Covid-19 bill 

The transparency and accountability of this bill should not be taken lightly by the Malaysian government. It must include transparency practices to ensure government’s integrity in managing the Covid-19 crisis. 

The government and the Attorney-General’s Chambers should include in the bill provisions for parliamentary oversight on executive governance in implementing parliament-approved policies, as the United Kingdom had done in its Coronavirus Act 2020. 

In the UK, the government must report to parliament every two months, including the rules not contained in the act. If parliament does not meet, the report should be published on the government’s website. 

The issue of transparency and accountability of the Covid-19 bill in Malaysia can be dealt with if the government gives the parliamentary select committee the opportunity to review the bill before it is debated by lawmakers before the second reading.

This was done in New Zealand, when the bill on Covid-19 was passed to the Epidemic Response Committee comprising lawmakers from different parties  after its first reading on May 5. Later, the committee tabled it to parliament on March 12, 2020. All lawmakers then debated in the Committee of the Whole House and eventually passed the bill. 

Overall, the Covid-19 bill in New Zealand took eight days to pass in an effective and transparent manner. It would not be a problem if the Malaysian government followed the same practice to allow scrutiny of the Covid-19 bill and ensure its implementation is successful to address socio-economic issues in Malaysia. – July 13, 2020.

* Fakhrurrazi Rashid reads The Malaysian Insight.


 

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.