The first debate in Malaysia’s new parliament descended into noisy name-calling yesterday as a newly emboldened opposition took on the government.
Monkey and Bigfoot were two of the epithets used in a rowdy session during which lawmakers shouted and gesticulated in heated exchanges across the floor of the chamber.
The scenes, broadcast live on television, were an indicator of the new shape of Malaysian politics after Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s governing coalition suffered its worst ever election results in March.
The March 8 polls saw his Barisan Nasional coalition, which has ruled the country for the last half century, lose its two-thirds majority in parliament as well as control of five states.
The first sitting of Malaysia’s 12th parliament was delayed by more than 20 minutes as government and opposition parliamentarians hurled barbs and raised technical issues.
Opposition Democratic Action Party chairman and lawmaker Karpal Singh began by questioning the way the session was being held when he was distracted by a member of parliament, Bung Moktar Radin.
“I hope Bigfoot ... does not disrupt the proceedings,” Karpal taunted him, using a long-standing gibe about Bung’s physical size.
“Bigfoot, sit down,” he said.
Bung sprang from his chair, shouting: “I am bigfoot, you are big monkey.”
Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia struggled to control the situation.
“Let’s not create chaos in parliament,” he appealed as the verbal exchanges continued. “Let us ensure there is order in parliament.”
A semblance of order was restored when Abdullah responded to a question on measures taken to reduce the impact of rising fuel and food prices.
However, Pandikar’s refusal to allow the usual follow-up questions to the prime minister’s response drew a further outburst, with former opposition leader Lim Kit Siang calling the restriction “a mockery of parliament.”
An exasperated Pandikar again appealed for calm in the house.
“Now we have spent one hour shouting on issues, is this a democratic process? Can we continue peacefully?” he said.
FEELING THREATENED: The first military commission under Kim Jong-un’s leadership to last longer than a day is a sign of a growing escalatory doctrine, an analyst said North Korea discussed assigning additional duties to its frontline army units at a key military meeting, state media said yesterday, suggesting that the country might deploy battlefield nuclear weapons targeting South Korea along the rivals’ tense border. The discussion comes as South Korean officials said North Korea has finished preparations for its first nuclear test in five years, as part of possible efforts to build a warhead to be mounted on short-range weapons capable of hitting targets in South Korea. During an ongoing meeting of the Central Military Commission of the ruling Workers’ Party on Wednesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and
TRADE TALK: Xiao Qian said that Australia had fired the ‘first shot’ in deteriorating trade relations with China, but improvements were possible if Canberra takes action China’s new ambassador to Australia chided protesters who heckled him yesterday during a speech about the future of relations between the two countries. Xiao Qian (肖千), who has only been in the role since January, had just begun his speech at the University of Technology Sydney when the first protesters interjected, calling for freedom for Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong. The ambassador was repeatedly interrupted by sign-wielding protesters, some criticizing China’s treatment of the Uighur people as well as the university for inviting Xiao to speak. “People who are coming again and again to interrupt the process, that’s not expression of freedom of
China’s COVID-19 outbreak is shifting to its south coast, with a flareup in Shenzhen triggering mass testing and a lockdown of some neighborhoods, while Macau — an hour’s drive away — is racing to stop its first outbreak in eight months. The new cases come as China’s two most important cities, Beijing and Shanghai, look to be subduing the virus after months of strict curbs and repeated testing. Shanghai yesterday reported nine local cases, while Beijing reported five. Nationwide, China yesterday reported 34 new COVID-19 infections. Yet new clusters continue to emerge, prompting action from local officials. Borders are increasingly under pressure, with
New Zealand stargazers were left puzzled and awed by strange, spiraling light formations in the night sky on Sunday night. At about 7:25pm, Alasdair Burns, a stargazing guide on Stewart Island, also called Rakiura, received a text from a friend saying to go outside and look at the sky. He went out and saw a huge, blue spiral of light amid the darkness. “It looked like an enormous spiral galaxy, just hanging there in the sky,” Burns said. “Quite an eerie feeling.” “We quickly banged on the doors of all our neighbors to get them out as well. And so there were
RSS