THE Dewan Rakyat sitting on Monday could gone ahead if a hybrid parliamentary system was put in place, said the Bar Council.

Its president, A.G. Kalidas said the postponement of Monday’s sitting could have been prevented if the discussion over the hybrid session was addressed right at the beginning.

“The Malaysian Bar considers the deferment of the discussion on hybrid sittings of Parliament as a missed opportunity.”

“This should have been addressed right at the beginning. The necessity for such an implementation is beyond peradventure, evident, and should have been a priority during a global pandemic.”

 “We take the view that the postponement of the Dewan Rakyat sitting on Monday reflects negatively on those in positions of power. This is especially so when there are matters of significant national importance that need to be deliberated upon without further delay,” Kalidas said in a statement today.

Dewan Rakyat secretary Nizam Mydin Bacha Mydin yesterday said Monday’s sitting would be postponed following a risk assessment by the health ministry, which detected 11 positive Covid-19 cases after 1,183 samples had been taken.

Kalidas said that parliament could have employed hybrid mechanisms and appropriate standard operating procedure (SOP) early on to ensure the health of all those present during the sittings.

He added the failure of Parliament to introduce a motion on hybrid measures, as well as to adopt them, means that Parliament sittings would continue to be postponed, resulting in a hindrance towards democracy.

“Such alternative arrangements are important during a time when the number of Covid-19 cases in our country has been rising exponentially. Our current Parliament is well equipped with the requisite technological tools to innovate and adapt to the current circumstances.”

“Parliament should amend its standing orders to authorise hybrid parliamentary sittings, and, thereafter, immediately proceed with such a session. Good governance must prevail during these unprecedented times in order to avert a constitutional crisis, where the only ones who will suffer are the people of Malaysia,” he stressed. – August 1, 2021.