Agong to open Parliament sitting on March 7

The Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah will officiate the opening ceremony of the first meeting of the fourth session of Parliament on Monday. Tuanku Abdul Halim, whose term as Agong ends in December, is scheduled to deliver a speech for the inauguration of both the Dewan Negara, and Dewan Rakyat sittings. His speech will be debated by members of both houses of Parliament beginning with the Dewan Rakyat, on Tuesday. Dewan Rakyat will sit for 20 days until April 7, and the Senate will begin its sessions on April 18, ending on May 4, after 11 days of sitting. Among the matters which are of public interest in this sitting, is the proposed amendment to the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, which aims to improve the Act, including imposing higher fines for offences. The sitting will also see the presentation of the National Security Council (NSC) Bill 2015, and 26 amendments to 17 laws related to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement signed by the government, on February 4 this year. The NSC Bill, which was approved by both houses in December last year, has been brought back for discussion after the meeting of the Conference of Rulers found there were certain provisions in the bill that need to be refined. The amendment seeks to provide 15 special powers for the establishment of NSC and security forces to control and coordinate security operations. Apart from that, other bills that will be presented at the sitting this time include the Children (Amendment) Bill 2015, Dangerous Drugs (Special Preventive Measures) (Amendment) 2015, and the Legal Profession (Amendment) Bill 2015 which were postponed in the last session. Earlier, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said a special session to commemorate the Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH370 will also be held, with MPs being given the opportunity to deliver speeches in memory of the tragic incident. The plane carrying 239 passengers and crew, disappeared from radar screens enroute to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur, on March 8, 2014. In addition, PAS, which is awaiting approval from the Conference of Rulers, still hope that a private bill to amend the Shariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 or Act 355 can be presented at Parliament to pave the way for the implementation of hudud law in Kelantan. Kelantan Shariah Criminal Code II Technical Committee chairman Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah was previously quoted as saying the amendement had yet to receive approval from sultans in several states. – Bernama, March 5, 2016.]]>