PETALING JAYA: Petaling Jaya MP Maria Chin Abdullah (pix) drew praise and criticism for walking out of the Dewan Rakyat while former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak was speaking during the debate on Budget 2021 on Tuesday.
Batu Kawan MP Kasthuri Patto said even she would not have sat in for Najib’s speech.
“I refuse to be in the Dewan Rakyat while Najib Razak, a convicted felon for corruption, debates Budget 2021 for 90 minutes as BN Backbenchers (Club) chairman,” Kasthuri said in a Facebook post.
“Does BN have no other representative?” she said in the same post.
In a tweet yesterday, Maria pointed out that the former prime minister had already been convicted for a crime, yet he was still present as head of the BN Backbenchers Club.
“He is given the opportunity to debate as if nothing has happened. I protested this and have walked out,” she said in her tweet.
However, political commentator Prof Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi told theSun that he disagrees with Maria’s action.
“Until someone has exhausted all legal avenues, his opinions should still matter,” Tajuddin said, adding that Najib had been given a platform to speak and his suggestions made sense.
“Personally, I believe it is morally incorrect to walk out on him during mid-speech. He still has the right as an MP to express his opinions.”
When asked if MPs facing trial or conviction should be asked to go on leave from Parliament, Tajuddin said it would boil down to how these convictions are taken in context.
Jason Loh Seong Wei, head of Social, Law and Human Rights at Emir Research Malaysia, noted that while Najib has been convicted of the crime of corruption, the same court also granted him bail pending his appeal against conviction.
“Therefore, his conviction is not final yet.”
Loh said there should not be a blanket rule on whether an MP should be barred from debating if he or she has been convicted of a crime.
“Context-specific reasons or factors should be taken into account.”
Loh agreed that it would be ideal for an elected official who is facing trial to voluntarily step down or take leave, as in Japan. However, he said it would take a long time for Malaysia to accept such a culture.
“What we need is public pressure, perhaps in the form of a nationwide signature campaign. If our society does not feel strongly about this, we cannot introduce such a practice.”
