HOLD your horses would best be veteran lawmaker Lim Kit Siang’s last-ditch advice to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob as the latter gears up to seek an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong at 4pm today (Oct 6).
As the Sinar Daily news portal reported of several political appointees in ministries beginning to vacate their offices yesterday (Oct 5) amid wide speculation of the dissolvement of the Malaysian Parliament to make way for the 15th General Election (GE15), the Iskandar Puteri MP reminded the PM that he has yet to secure the Cabinet’s approval for dissolution.
This is especially so in the light that many ministers of his coalition Cabinet have publicly declared their opposition, according to Kit Siang.
“This would be in accordance with the provisions in the Malaysian Constitution,” asserted the 81 year-old DAP supremo.
“Ismail’s position that the PM may decide on his own without reference to his Cabinet whether Parliament should be dissolved is not strictly correct, especially as Malaysia is in the era of coalition politics and the days of the political hegemony of one political party are over.”
He added: “Ismail Sabri should lead the country into the new political era of coalition politics, and not act like a political dinosaur oblivious to the political changes happening around him.”
Meanwhile, an officer of a minister told Sinar Daily that they were emptying their offices on their accord given that there were no instructions to vacate the offices.
“It was something that we understood ourselves, tomorrow (Oct 6) InsyaAllah (God willing) I will start packing,” the source told Sinar Harian (the Malay language sister publication of Sinar Daily).
Meanwhile, another minister’s officer shared several photos of the office being emptied on social media yesterday (Oct 5). “Cleaning up first. We volunteered (to vacate the office),” the officer wrote in the caption.
It is a norm for offices of political appointees to be vacated ahead of polling day or in anticipation of a change in the Government. – Oct 6, 2022
Main pic credit: Malaysiakini
