PARLIAMENT is one step closer towards achieving autonomy, with the Parliamentary Services Bill to be tabled in the October session of the Dewan Rakyat.

Former de facto law minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, who is now the Dewan Negara president, said a draft was being prepared for cabinet approval.

“My promise to the prime minister is that I will get the bill tabled by this October.

“Once the law is passed and comes into force, a six-month transition will be given for its implementation,” he was quoted as saying in The Star Online today.

The PSA would allow parliament to be independent from the executive branch of government. It would be able to manage its own affairs, including selecting its staff and controlling its expenditure.

The PSA is not a new law. It was first introduced in 1963 but was repealed by the then prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad in 1992.

Parliamentary affairs were then parked under the purview of the Prime Minister’s Department.

“I initiated the proposal (to revive the PSA) when I was minister under the previous administration,” said Wan Junaidi.

“However, at that time, there were still a lot of loose ends and policy matters that had yet to be decided.

“A final decision was made on the policies related to the bill during a one-and-a-half hour meeting I chaired on Wednesday night.

“It marks the first real step for the PSA to be revived after 30 years,” he said.

With the PSA, Wan Junaidi said parliament will have greater autonomy to manage its finances and administration.

“A Parliamentary Service Commission will be set up so that the management of personnel in parliament will no longer come under the Public Services Department.

“It will mean that parliament can recruit its own officers. It will also get money directly from the Finance Ministry, and it will be free to determine how it is spent.

“An internal audit will be carried out to see how the money is spent, and it will also come under the scrutiny of the auditor-general,” he said.

A council, co-chaired by the Dewan Negara president and Dewan Rakyat speaker, will be set up to oversee the management of parliamentary affairs.

Wan Junaidi said the council will comprise representatives from the relevant ministries and opposition MPs and senators. – August 25, 2023.