Has BN won the battle but lost the war?

IPOH— Was anything achieved yesterday? This is the question that many are asking about the chaos that erupted in the Perak State Assembly.

It was the first time that Malaysians had seen such a spectacle at a legislative sitting, and on top of that, one that lasted five hours.

The assemblymen spent barely any time in their seats as members from the opposing parties wrested microphones away from one another, shoved one another around and generally behaved boorishly.

“It was utterly disgraceful. We expected them to have a showdown: name-calling, protesting and shouting, perhaps. What happened today was a new low in Malaysian politics,” wrote The Star's group chief editor, Datuk Wong Chun Wai, in his blog.

In the end, Barisan Nasional (BN) prevailed. It managed to get an Assembly Speaker of its choice installed, and the one appointed by opposition coalition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) removed. The coalition has refused to recognise the new Speaker, but it might not try to force the issue again at the assembly's next sitting.

Having a Speaker on its side will help BN conduct the business of the House smoothly, but has it won the battle only to lose the war?

Many analysts seem to feel that this might well be the case. Although both sides played a role in triggering the fracas and were equally unruly, BN could be the bigger loser in terms of public perception.

This is because the police were used to secure control of the assembly.

Pictures of ousted PR Speaker V. Sivakumar being hauled out of his seat and dragged from the hall have already made the rounds.

They captured what many, no doubt, will perceive as an iconic moment.

“It is seen as BN demonstrating that it has naked power,” said historian and political analyst Neil Khor. He noted that any gain would be “a pyrrhic victory” — one not worth winning given the losses suffered — as BN would 'have to face the electorate at some time”.

He told The Straits Times that if the matter was not resolved, it would become a national issue by the next general election, which could have a painful impact on BN.

Analyst Khoo Kay Peng wrote in his blog that the police and the State Secretariat appeared to be “colluding with the politicians to complete the power grab”.

“The Perak democratic crisis has shown that it is a failed state. A caring and responsible coalition would have anticipated that ruling without the majority support of the people could not be carried out smoothly,” he noted.

The Bar Council, too, condemned the police intervention, and called it a bleak day for democracy.

However, Perak Mentri Besar Zambry Abdul Kadir, a BN man, defended the decision to call in the police, saying that the situation had become unruly.

“They (PR assemblymen) left their seats and rudely attacked BN and independent representatives, and created a chaotic and uncontrolled situation,” he said.

He noted that the sergeant-at-arms who had tried to remove Sivakumar was injured when PR assemblymen moved in to stop him.

Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin criticised the opposition for its actions in “purportedly fighting for democracy”.

“Our national image has been jeopardised by assemblymen who prefer anarchy,” he wrote in his blog.

Perak has been in political limbo since February, when BN seized control of the state through defections in PR's ranks — a move that the opposition has asked the High Court to rule as illegitimate. The ruling is expected on Monday.

Nevertheless, like many others, the Bar Council believes that even the court's decision might not adequately reflect the will of the people and that the only solution to the impasse might be to hold a fresh state election, although few are betting that one will actually take place.

“BN may now have control of the assembly and the administration, but they have to win back the hearts of the people,” said Khor.

It will be a very rocky road ahead for Perak. — Straits Times

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Perak Pakatan reps to attend May 7 assembly

IPOH: Perak Pakatan Rakyat assemblymen, including ousted mentri besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin, will attend the state assembly sitting on May 7.

Nizar however noted that the attendance would be under protest for the notices on the assembly sent out without the knowledge of Speaker V. Sivakumar.

“We will attend the assembly still, out of respect to the Speaker.

“We will be there to honour whatever decision the Speaker makes,” he told reporters after attending a briefing with Pakatan-elected village chiefs here Thursday.

Amongst the much-awaited decision is the seating arrangement in the House, which will be indicated by Sivakumar himself.

Nizar said that to date, the sitting arrangement practised previously would remain unchanged and Pakatan’s place was still on the right side of the Speaker, where the government of the day sits.

“As far as we know, the sitting arrangement is still status quo. However, this is still subject to any decision made by the Speaker to relocate the seats,” he said.

Nizar also said that Pakatan had not fielded any questions to the Barisan Nasional government for the usual question and answer session in the House.

As such, the session would be scrapped from the assembly agenda.

”We have no questions for them because questions are only posed to a legal government. ”We do not recognise this (Barisan) government,” he said.

Nizar also said that Pakatan would not respond to a recent notice sent by assembly secretary Abdullah Antong Sabri asking all assemblymen to propose a candidate to replace the Speaker.

The letter was sent in view of the possible success of a motion filed by Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir to remove Sivakumar from the Speaker’s post.

“We will not respond to this because the Speaker is still valid,” he said.

On the motion, Nizar said that Sivakumar still reserved the right to reject it or allow it to be brought into the House.

“It is up to him to decide. Any state assemblyman has the right to file a motion but the Speaker decides whether to shelve it or bring it up for discussions,” he said.

Meanwhile, Nizar said he was unable to predict what would happen during the much-anticipated May 7 sitting and told reporters to be patient.

“On May 7, we will all have a nice cup of tea and go for breakfast with all the assemblymen.

“You are welcome to join us if you so wish. The rest, I do not know what will happen,” he jokingly told reporters. (TheStar)

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Is Ridwan Ibrahim was eligible to hear or grant a restraining order against state speaker V Sivakumar?

IPOH— With his term as judicial commissioner ending February 28, the Perak constitutional crisis has taken another twist with the question whether Ridwan Ibrahim was eligible to hear or grant a restraining order against state speaker V Sivakumar yesterday.

The Ipoh-based judicial commissioner was first appointed on March 1, 2007 to a two year term which ended last Saturday. It is not known if his term of office has been extended as the newly-minted Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) has yet to meet.

Unlike judges who have full tenure, judicial commissioners get two-year contracts under Article 122AB of the Federal Constitution and can sit to hear cases in the High Court.

A legal source said the judicial commissioners used to get extensions but now have to apply to the JAC for consideration as high court judges.

"I am not sure about Ridwan's status but the JAC can easily extend his appointment retrospectively like in the past," the source told The Malaysian Insider.

Ridwan's status, unless confirmed, could be another contentious point in the protracted Perak political impasse turned constitutional crisis as Pakatan Rakyat's Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaluddin claims he is still Menteri Besar although the Perak palace has appointed Datuk Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir last Feb 5 when three government lawmakers turned independent.

Both Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional have 28 members each in the 59-seat state assembly, making the three independents a decisive force. Lawsuits from both sides have muddied the issue which is now tied up in legal process. Earlier, judicial commissioner Mohamad Ariff Yusof had recused himself in Kuala Lumpur to hear Nizar's suit challenging the validity of Zambry's appointment.

The legal source said the matter could be clarified when the JAC finally meets. "We don't even know where and when they are going to meet, their staffing and other issues. They could meet under a tree," he quipped, referring to the Perak assembly meeting under a rain tree in Ipoh.

Ridwan, who disqualified Sivakumar's private lawyers yesterday in favour of state lawyer Zulkairnan Hassan, issued a restraining order against the Perak speaker from convening meetings “purporting to be meetings of the Perak legislative assembly”, after accepting arguments that the immunity from judicial review stated in the federal constitution was only for proceedings in the state assembly.

The order for an indefinite period of time was granted at 5pm under Section 44 of the Specific Relief Act which grants the court the power to make orders to a public official.

The order came hours after Sivakumar convened a meeting under a raintree 200 metres from the state legislative assembly building that was locked by order of the State Secretary and cordoned off by a phalanx of riot police armed with shields and water cannons.

A hearing date will be set by the court on March 5, which is also the day that the three independents who left Pakatan Rakyat and now support Barisan Nasional, will go to court to quash the speaker’s decision to consider their state assembly seats vacant. (TMI)

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