TAIPING MP Wong Kah Woh has chided PAS MP Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man over his claim that “top leaders can’t even ask questions” by highlighting the difference between “can’t ask questions” and “didn’t ask questions”.
The PAS deputy president and Kubang Kerian MP has attempted to defend the ‘invisible’ Perikatan Nasional (PN) trio of Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin (Opposition leader), Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin (Bersatu president) and Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang (PAS president) during the series of Prime Minister’s Question Time (PMQT) sessions at the Dewan Rakyat.
“PMX (Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim) has attended seven PMQTs out of the eight weeks sitting which just ended recently (April 4),” revealed Wong who served as chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) from August 2020 to Oct 2022.
“More than 60 questions (including supplementary questions) from both sides of the house were answered. The PN trio has plenty of opportunity to ask question, of course provided only if they are physically present in the house.”
Delving further on the matter, Wong said the first question the opposition camp ought to answer before complaining that their top trio have no chance to ask question is whether “the PN top trio had ever submitted any questions for the PMQT”.
“There will be no question to be chosen for answer if there is no question submitted. Simple logic,” he justified.
“Furthermore, the parliamentary process is (that) even if you don’t submit any questions or your questions are not chosen, you still have the chance to stand up and ask second supplementary question or even the third supplementary question if allowed by the (Dewan Rakyat) speaker.”
Added Wong: “Both sides of the house will be given equal opportunity to ask Supplementary questions. For the first question of PMQT during the final day of last sitting, the speaker had even allowed a fourth supplementary question to be asked. That was on the question relating to the PM’s (Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim) China visit.”
Above all else, it is also the Parliamentary convention that if the Opposition leader is to stand up and request to speak – or in this case to ask supplementary questions – he will be given the first priority.
“The same goes to those who are senior leaders of parties. The PN trio fall into this category. However, when you are not there in the chamber, you definitely have no chance to ask supplementary question, no matter how senior you are. Simple logic,” added Wong who is also the DAP’s political education director.
Meanwhile, retired DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang wants Tuan Ibrahim and former Bersatu information chief Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan, who is also Tasek Gelugor MP, to be referred to the Committee of Privileges for misrepresenting the “powers and privileges” of the Dewan Rakyat in exonerating Muhyiddin, Hadi and Hamzah for playing truant at all PMQTs during the eight-week Parliament session from February to April 2023.
“The speaker will be guilty of the most unparliamentary conduct if he had not given Hadi priority over other backbenchers,” berated the veteran lawmaker who was the country’s longest-serving Opposition leader by holding that position for 29 years on three separate occasions.
“The speaker will have a problem if all three PN leaders – Hadi, Muhyiddin and Hamzah – stood up at the same time to ask a supplementary question to the PM.”
Added Kit Siang: “I would have expected the three PN leaders to dominate the PMQTs but the three PN leaders did not even submit a single question during the eight weeks of PMQTs. Can the PN trio explain why?” – April 7, 2023
