Reports of the government’s intention to declare a state of emergency – ostensibly due to the Covid-19 pandemic – have put citizens in a mixed state of anger, panic, and confusion. While this blog post can do little to alleviate the former two emotions, it will at least endeavour to give at least some clarity on whether…
As a follow-up to Lim Wei Jiet’s timely post titled ‘1-Day Parliament Sitting: Motive, Machinations & Lessons from UK’s Prorogation Controversy’, this post will analyse in greater depth the procedural mechanisms which would likely be relevant to the effectuation of the government’s proposed one-day-session of the Dewan Rakyat. It will argue that a majority opposed…
“This Parliament is the crown and climax of our Constitution: in fact, it is the very essence.” – Tuanku Abdul Rahman ibni Almarhum Tuanku Muhammad, YDPA of the Federation of Malaya (Dewan Ra’ayat Hansard, 12 September 1959) The Background After the Perikatan Nasional Government was formed on 1st March 2020, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin postponed…
The Stimulus Package Yesterday, Muhyiddin Yassin announced a purported RM250 billion stimulus package to weather Malaysia through the Covid-19 pandemic’s devastating economic impact. At the outset, let us be clear that the Government is not actually spending RM250 billion, but merely injecting RM25 billion. The balance RM225 billion actually comprises of the total value of…
If you told experienced political observers just three days ago that Muhyiddin Yassin would be Prime Minister at the end of Malaysia’s recent political crisis, you’d have been resoundingly dismissed. But that’s exactly what happened. On March 1, 2020, Muhyiddin Yassin of the Malaysian United Indigenous Party (BERSATU) was sworn in as the eighth Prime…