KUALA LUMPUR: Pendang Member of Parliament (MP) from Perikatan Nasional (PN) Datuk Awang Hashim (pix) who was suspended from the Dewan Rakyat for four days by Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul for disturbing the proceedings earlier today was allowed to return after he apologised.
The suspension followed the commotion that broke out after several opposition MPs protested the motion brought forth by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) to allow Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to congratulate and express loyalty to Malaysian King His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim and thank Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Mustafa Billah Shah for his service.
The opposition MPs also staged a few minutes walkout after Awang’s suspension.
Awang who returned just before Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin (PN-Larut) took the floor to debate the motion of thanks for the King’s royal address, immediately asked for an explanation from Johari for the suspension.
“I asked you to take back what you said, but you refused to do so…I may be your friend, but when I preside over the sitting, please show some respect,” Johari said.
However, Hamzah interjected and asked for the suspension to be revoked if Awang were to apologise and retract his statements. Hamzah also told Awang to stop arguing with the Speaker and apologise.
Awang then offered an apology which was accepted by Johari.
Yesterday, the Malaysian King, His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim gave the ‘green light’ to the Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat and the President of Dewan Negara to take stern action against any member of the Dewan Rakyat or Dewan Negara who ‘oversteps the boundaries’. -Bernama
