Friday May 8, 2009

Showdown over Speaker’s seat in Perak

Chaos at Perak Assembly sitting
Battleground Ipoh

IPOH: It was one of the ugliest scenes in Malaysian state assembly history. There were shouting wars, furious shoving, assemblymen standing on tables and even one grabbing the Speaker’s microphone. The dramatic showdown between Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat assemblymen was to wrest control of the Speaker’s Chair.

In the end, Barisan succeeded in its “fight” to elect former Sungkai assemblyman Datuk R. Ganesan as the new Speaker, after Tronoh assemblyman V. Sivakumar was forcibly removed from the Chair by several plainclothes policemen at 2.45pm.

The House, by majority achieved through Barisan’s 28 assemblymen and three Independent assemblymen, sacked Sivakumar, replacing him with Ganesan.

The day began with Sivakumar assuming his seat at 9.15am while Pakatan assemblymen, who had arrived much earlier, sat on the government’s side of the Dewan to the right of the Chair.

Shouting match: Pakatan Rakyat assemblyman Loke Chee Yan (standing on the table) pointing and shouting as the commotion broke out inside the Perak state assembly Thursday.

Sivakumar wasted no time in declaring that the presence of Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir and his six exco members was illegal as he considered them suspended. He also directed that the three Independent assemblymen remove themselves as he had considered them to have resigned.

By 10am, a full-on shouting match was taking place between Pakatan and Barisan assemblymen. “Shame on you!” a Barisan assemblyman was heard yelling at the Speaker.

“I ask that all 10 leave the Dewan according to the Standing Orders. Only then will the assembly resume,” Sivakumar repeatedly said into the microphone.

When Dr Zambry, who was seated with the other Barisan assemblyman to the left of the Speaker, tried to interject, Sivakumar countered: “I don’t want to hear anything, I don’t want to hear anything.”

Dr Zambry then pushed Barisan’s motion ahead, proposing to sack the Speaker, backed with a show of hands by 31 assemblymen. Then, Sivaku-mar’s microphone was switched off and Deputy Speaker Hee Yit Foong spoke up to declare that Sivakumar had to leave the hall as he had lost the confidence of the assembly.

Pakatan representatives jeered when the Barisan assemblymen went on to propose and elect Ganesan as the new Speaker.

At 10.55am, Ganesan slipped on the Speaker’s robes to the cheers of Barisan assemblyman while Sivaku-mar, who remained in the Speaker’s seat, looked on.

State executive councillor Datuk Hamidah Osman then proposed to set up the new committees for Public Accounts, Standing Orders, and Rights and Privileges. She also proposed a motion to declare Pakatan’s “under-the-tree assembly” on March 3 illegal and its resolutions invalid. All her motions were approved.

Things turned ugly when Pakatan assemblymen swarmed around Ganesan to try to get him to leave while Barisan assemblymen formed a protective circle around him.

Over the next few hours, several brief scuffles broke out despite a “cooling down” period as Ganesan stood down proceedings twice.

At the height of the chaos, several representatives had to be pulled away from engaging in fistfights, while Kepayang assemblyman Loke Chee Yan stood on the table.

Pasir Pinji assemblyman Thomas Su was spotted grabbing the microphone away from Ganesan. Several assemblymen yelled: “You are not the Speaker! Get out! Out!” and chanted “Bubar DUN! Bubar DUN!” (Dissolve the assembly!).

Former Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin, Sitiawan assemblyman and Perak DAP chairman Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham and most Barisan exco members stayed away from the fray.

Despite the intervention of a police officer, the “battle” moved to the Speaker’s seat where Sivakumar had studiously kept watch, refusing lunch and toilet breaks.

Surrounded by assemblymen, some trying to remove him from the Chair and others fighting to keep him in his seat, he was eventually forcibly dragged away and out of the hall by plainclothes policemen.

The Sergeant-At-Arms later removed the Speaker’s Chair.

At one point, Ganesan, booed by the Opposition, ordered Teja assemblyman Chang Lih Kang and Simpang Pulai assemblyman Chan Ming Kai to leave the House.

Things only started to calm down with the anticipation of the royal address, and at 3.10pm, the Raja Muda of Perak Raja Nazrin Shah finally entered the hall with Raja Puan Besar Perak Tuanku Zara Salim, some five hours after he had arrived.

The sitting was adjourned sine die at 4.05pm.

Ganesan expressed happiness at being elected the new Speaker, adding: “Today, they (Pakatan) created some issues because their man was the Speaker. But you know the maxim of democracy, the majority rules.”

Sivakumar blamed interference from outsiders which resulted in him being forcibly removed from the Chair.

He said in his blog that he was dragged out and held for an hour by police while proceedings went on.

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