Hudud bill not likely to make the cut - Kit Siang

PETALING JAYA: DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang believes that PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang's private member's bill on hudud implementation will be debated in the next parliamentary sitting in May.
The Gelang Patah MP pointed out that PAS does not have the numbers for the Marang MP’s private member’s bill.
"Malaysiakini reported that Abdul Hadi had previously presented a similar private member's bill in Parliament in 1996, but it had remained on the Dewan Rakyat Order Paper and never went to the stage of being presented to Parliament for debate let alone for a vote.
"I believe the same will happen in the May meeting of Parliament where Abdul Hadi’s hudud private member’s bill motion will appear and remain in the Dewan Rakyat Order Paper, but will not reach the stage of being presented to Parliament for debate and vote," he said this in a statement.
In the last sitting, Abdul Hadi's private bill was sighted in the parliament order paper for a few days before it adjourned sine die on April 9.
Lim said that the private member’s bill motion will only be able to progress beyond appearing on the Order Paper if the UMNO/Barisan Nasional government decides that parliamentary time be given to it, and will present a double major crack in Malaysian politics – firstly in the Barisan Nasional, in particular for the Sabah and Sarawak component parties of BN, and secondly, even more critically, a major crisis point for the survival of the Malaysian federation since its formation 52 years ago in 1963.
He noted that even for Abdul Hadi’s hudud private member’s bill motion to appear on the Parliamentary Order Paper in May will represent a continuing crisis for Pakatan Rakyat, for it will be another instance of a major breach of the Pakatan Rakyat Common Policy Framework as well as the PR consensus principle.
"Abdul Hadi has defended his unilateral private member’s bill motion in the April meeting of Parliament, claiming that it was normal for him to keep PAS leaders in the dark about the private member’s bill motion as this was also what happened in 1996.
"He said that in 1996, his private member’s bill motion was also not brought to the attention of the other PAS leaders," he said.
Lim noted that what Pakatan Rakyat is concerned about, is the specific commitment by Abdul Hadi at the Pakatan Rakyat Leadership Council meeting at PAS Headquarters on Feb 8, where the PR Leadership Council took the unanimous decision that any amendments to the Kelantan Syariah Criminal Enactment in the Kelantan State Assembly or any private member’s bill in Parliament on Hudud implementation, will first be presented to the PR Leadership Council.
"Both these commitments have not been honoured by Abdul Hadi, although he represented PAS at the PR Leadership Council meeting on Feb 8," he added.
Lim questioned if serious and solemn commitments made by PR leaders at the PR Leadership Council are openly ignored and violated, how PR can continue to operate as a viable political coalition or continue to command the respect and support of the people at large.
This is the root cause of the PR crisis which will spell the survival or demise of coalition, he added.