Malaysian PM Mahathir to nominate opposition MP to lead parliamentary oversight committee
04 April, 2019
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad will on Thursday (Apr 4) table a motion in parliament to change the chairman of the bipartisan Public Accounts Committee (PAC), replacing a lawmaker from his party with another from the opposition bloc.
The motion to replace Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia’s Ronald Kiandee with Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Noraini Ahmad came after an outcry from both parliamentarians and members of the public.
The prime minister’s insistence for Mr Kiandee to lead the committee ran counter to a campaign pledge by the Pakatan Harapan (PH) that the PAC will be led by an opposition lawmaker.
The PAC is a parliamentary oversight committee that scrutinises financial matters and accounts.
There are 12 PAC members – eight from PH, two from BN, and one each from Parti Islam Se-Malaysia and Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu.
Earlier, all three opposition lawmakers, including Ms Noraini, resigned from the PAC pending the replacement of Mr Kiandee as its chairman.
Ms Nurul Izzah Anwar, a lawmaker from the ruling Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), also resigned from the committee.
Parti Keadilan Rakyat lawmaker Nurul Izzah Anwar. (File photo: Bernama)
In an interview with the Straits Times, she referred to Dr Mahathir as a former dictator and said she was “heartbroken” by PH’s slow delivery of its campaign promises.
Her comments drew criticism from Economic Affairs Minister Azmin Ali, who is also from the PKR.
Mr Azmin tweeted: “This country needs doers who are prepared to tough it out all the way, not cry babies.”
Defending his daughter, PKR president Anwar Ibrahim said that the minister should “cool down”.
He added that Ms Nurul Izzah’s remarks were directed generally against the PH government and not specifically at Dr Mahathir.
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