KUALA LUMPUR: DAP’s Bukti Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh (pix) is set to create history as the first backbencher in the country to table a report and wind up a debate in the Dewan Rakyat tomorrow.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Liew Vui Keong said Ramkarpal, who is the Parliament Special Select Committee for the Consideration of Bills chairman, will be tabling the committee’s findings on the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC).
“This will be a record for the Dewan, whereby an ordinary Member of Parliament will table a report for something to be debated.
“The chairman of the committee will also be doing the winding up tomorrow. It’s like he will be a minister for a day, and this is the first time it is happening in Malaysia,” he told a press conference, here today.
When asked if this is allowed under the parliamentary standing order, Liew merely said this was the first time that a bill has been referred to a select committee for consideration and deliberation.
Traditionally, either the minister or deputy minister will table and wind up any motions or debates.
Liew said once the debate is passed, the Executive will takeover the Bill, where it would either be passed or rejected in the Dewan Rakyat.
The IPCMC, which will act as an independent oversight body over any misconducts by police personnel, was tabled for the first reading in July this year, before it was debated on Oct 7.
However, the bill faced resistance from the opposition as well as several government backbenchers, prompting Deputy Speaker Nga Kor Ming to refer it to the special select committee for it to be ironed out.
Liew said, in all, there would be 13 new amendments to the bill, on top of 24 other changes that were made after it was tabled for the first reading in July.
