Life: The Journey Continues…

I want to write about something particularly important to me: debate at the Dewan Rakyat.

I was pleasantly surprised when Justin told me that my old high school, St. David’s, went to watch the first Parliamentary session (held 30th April, ‘08) since the March elections. Curious to see for myself, I followed the link he sent me, and went to read The Star’s report on the whole thing.

Full house: As the public gallery was full, this group of students from St. David's, Melaka, resorted to watching the proceedings from the public gallery entrance.

(Picture and caption nicked from http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/5/1/parliament/21119037&sec=parliament)

I received, then, an unpleasant surprise, when I read the artcile’s headline: “Live telecast may be scrapped“. The article said the Dewan Rakyat had “a circus-like atmosphere” two days ago, hence the Information Ministry would review the whole live telecast plan (my thoughts on this later).

The article went on to quote Information Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek (BN - Kemaman) and Foreign Minister Dr Rais Yatim (BN - Jelebu), who both blamed the “circus” squarely on the Opposition, and accused them of playing to the gallery. Hmph… way to go, Star! Keep giving us both sides of the story! (To be fair, The Star did air the opinions of Opposition MPs in its video coverage, and gave them a liiiiitle space here as well.)

Anyway, I turned to other sources to get more balanced perspectives. My first stop was Malaysiakini. They had a detailed breakdown of the goings-on of the session’s question time (the first 30 minutes of which were broadcast live on RTM 1; a broadcast I sadly missed). A quick summary of what transpired:

1. Karpal Singh (DAP - Bukit Gelugor) was upset that some MPs hadn’t raised their hands properly during the MPs’ swearing-in session on Monday, the 28th of April (a point he’d already raised on Monday). The Speaker of the House (Pandikar Amin Mulia) said he’d decided the matter and all MPs were lawfully sworn-in. A shouting match ensued where Karpal and Bung Moktar Radin (BN - Kinabatangan) resorted to name-calling.
2. Azmin Ali (PKR - Gombak) lamented that PKR MPs weren’t allowed their fair share during question time, and the first question should have been given to Opposition Leader, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (PKR - Permatang Pauh). More hoo-hah errupted when the Speaker said that’s the way it was gonna be. (I should note that Azmin Ali was the model of dignity, and didn’t waste too much time after pointing out his legitimate concerns. The arguments afterward were still silly time-wasters though.)
3. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (BN - Kepala Batas) took his first question from Razali Ibrahim (BN - Muar) on the government’s approach to improving Malaysians’ quality of life. More brouhaha when the Speaker disallowed any supplementary questions after the PM’s answer. Finally the PM got the Speaker to allow PAS leader Abdul Hadi Awang (PAS - Marang) a follow-up question. (Ok, I personally think this uproar was legitimate.)
4. Further commotion took place when Ibrahim Ali (Independent - Pasir Mas) griped about (wheelchair-bound) Karpal Singh not standing up when speaking in the House.
5. And the final (ridiculous) highlight of the day: Chong Chieng Jen (DAP - Bandar Kuching) complained about a question Bung Moktar asked because it allegedly exceeded the allowed 40 words (he says he counted 50). More childishness followed.

Three out of the above five (the exceptions perhaps being numbers 2 and 3) were petty, political cheap-shots. Actually, some of them were worse than just cheap and political. They were worthy of kindergarteners.

And what of those other sources I visited? Naturally AFP, the Times Online, the Press Association, and Reuters India had some good laughs reporting on the juvenile behaviour of our elected representatives in the August House. So yes, I wouldn’t be surprised if the St David’s students who visited Parliament two days ago were capable of more maturity than the parliamentarians they observed. A pity they had to waste their time going all the way to KL to watch an act with very little class.

Yes, I’m disappointed. I was naive enough to think there would be some significant change in the way the Dewan Rakyat was run the minute the new MPs stepped in. Clearly it’s going to take time, and the old guard Opposition MPs are as much a part of the problem as the BN people. But make no mistake: What happened in Parliament two days ago was NOTHING NEW. Parliament has certainly seen worse days. I kid thee not.

So for the Information Minister to use this as an excuse for scrapping the live telecast of parliamentary debates is completely disingenuous. He said the telecast was “grossly abused” by MPs wishing to play to the gallery for political mileage. One wonders if he’s never been to Parliament before. Otherwise this is pretence, plain and simple. An excuse, as I said, to remove the live telecast so grudgingly given.

I say that simply will not do. If ever our MPs are to feel ashamed of themselves and act with greater dignity, watching themselves on TV will do it. And if that doesn’t, little else will. The point is that it’s still our right to know how the people we put in office are representing us. Period. It’ll also serve as a good wake-up call to voters and let them realise just whom they’ve put in Parliament.

If you agree with me, then write to your MP and and tell him/her that the parliamentary telecasts should be here to stay. And tell him/her to extend the telecasts to the full 90 minutes of question time. Obviously the Prime MInister and the Information Ministry are the deciders in this matter. But at least your MP can speak up on your behalf in Parliament (and the PM and Info Ministers are both MPs as well, so…).

Don’t know who your MP is? Don’t know their address/email? Go here and check it out.

Don’t trust your MP (I don’t trust mine)? Write to MPs who will voice your concerns: bloggers like Eli Wong, Jeff Ooi, Lim Kit Siang, Wee Choo Keong, Tony Pua, Nik Azmi Nik Ahmad, Susan Loone, etc. Doesn’t matter if they’re not in your constituency.

If you like, you can send me your letter/email and I’ll put it up on this blog.

And by the way, if you needed any proof about the embarassment our Dewan Rakyat regularly is, take a look at these videos. These are but a small sample of our parliamentarians’ antics. More clips available on YouTube.

Part 1

Part 2

The above two videos show the childish exchanges in Parliament in the presence of EU observers. MPs seem to enjoy humiliating themselves and Malaysia in the eyes of the world.

Nazri Abdul Aziz’s idea of civil discourse

The now infamous “mari lawan” episode. The Opposition MPs are far from blameless, more so here than in the other videos. Notice how Lim Kit Siang’s (DAP - Ipoh Timur) important original question about the “kadar cukai yang tinggi di Kedah” is completely forgotten, not least of all by Kit Siang himself.

Part 1

Part 2

These last two videos show the even more infamous “bocor” incident.

So yes, Wednesday’s parliamentary embarassment is NO EXCUSE for depriving us of our live telecast… even if it turns out to be our least favourite show on TV.