KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 23 – Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has ridiculed Umno president Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi for asking Datuk Zambry Abdul Kadir to lodge a police report against the Perak State Assembly Speaker.
Writing in his popular chedet.cc blog, he said that while it was possible for the Speaker to commit a crime, “the suspension of any assemblyman is not a crime which the police can take action against.”
Known for his acerbic criticism, the former prime minister has been a thorn in Abdullah’s side in recent years.
But in previous remarks, he has also expressed his disapproval over Barisan’s move to court the defections of the two former PKR Perak assemblymen – Osman Jailu and Jamaludin Mohd Radzi.
The resignation from PKR of the two men and their backing for Barisan Nasional (BN) sparked the downfall of the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) Perak government but it has also drawn criticism because the two men are facing graft charges in court.
In his latest blog post, Dr Mahathir poured scorn on Abdullah’s suggestion for Zambry to lodge a police report against Speaker V Sivakumar over the suspension of the Perak MB and his entire state executive council.
“If the decision of the Speaker can be considered a crime, then what will happen when the Parliamentary Speaker suspends opposition members for whatever reasons?
“And this happens frequently. Will opposition members lodge police reports? If they can, then can we consider the police to have powers over the Parliamentary Speaker?”
The former PM also commented on Zambry’s statement that he would attend the state assembly sitting despite the suspension.
He said that under the legislature’s standing orders, the Speaker can direct officers of the assembly to remove Zambry.
“Also, where will Zambry sit? What if Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaluddin sits in the mentri besar’s chair? Will the Speaker ask his officers to force Nizar to vacate the chair?
“Let us all as citizens watch what happens next.”
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