Emergency Sitting Of Perak Assembly Cannot Be Held, Says Najib

KUANTAN, Feb 28 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said today the Perak State Assembly Speaker cannot call an emergency sitting of the assembly because the court has yet to make a decision on the status of the government in the state.

The Deputy Prime Minister said any decision to hold a state assembly sitting in Perak depended on the decision made by the court in relation to the case.

"It (sitting) cannot be held because there has been a court action," he told reporters after opening an assembly of undergraduates of Universiti Malaysia Pahang and the Eastern Zone National Education Carnival, here Saturday.

Najib said this when asked to comment on Perak State Assembly Speaker V. Sivakumar yesterday announcing that an emergency sitting of the assembly would be held on Tuesday.

Asked if the sitting was aimed at toppling the Barisan Nasional (BN) government in Perak, Najib said : "Whatever it is, we have to wait for the decision of the court first. We have to first establish the status of the Perak government in terms of the constitution."

On Feb 13, former Perak menteri besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin initiated court action in the Kuala Lumpur High Court to get a declaration that he is the rightful Menteri Besar of Perak.

He also sought an injunction to prevent the new menteri besar, Datuk Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir from carrying out the menteri besar's duties and for a fresh election to be held in Perak.

Najib added that the important thing now was for the new government in Perak to focus on serving the people of the state well.

"The state leaders in Perak must go down to the ground and show the people the new government's priority is their welfare," he said.

Also present at the function were Pahang Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob and Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.

In TAIPING, Zambry said Sivakumar's action was ultra-vires the Perak constitution and the Standing Orders of the state's legislature.

"He (Sivakumar) is making his own rules, it's up to him what he wants to do. He thinks by doing this he can circumvent the Sultan (of Perak) and others... some people say 'Singh is King' but I do not know if anyone is saying 'Siva is King'," he told reporters after launching the BN's election machinery for the Bukit Gantang by-election, here today.

Asked if he would be initiating legal action to prevent the sitting, Zambry said: "That is what he (Sivakumar) wants, bring everything to the courts. We must understand the state constitution and the assembly's Standing Orders are very clear on these matters. You can interpret them any way you want but they must be followed."

It is understood the emergency meeting is being called to move a vote of confidence in Mohammad Nizar as the Menteri Besar of Perak.

With Sivakumar having issued suspension orders on Zambry and his six executive councillors for 18 months and 12 months respectively from attending state assembly sittings and not recognising three lawmakers who defected from their parties as assemblymen, the ousted opposition government thinks it can return to power in Perak as the majority in the assembly now has shifted in its favour (28 versus 21).