KUALA LUMPUR – Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said (Pengerang-BN) has taken a swipe at several opposition leaders, whom she described as her “abang-abang” (brothers), over accusations that the unity government is using selective prosecution against certain lawmakers.
Speaking at the Dewan Rakyat, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) said according to the federal constitution, the term “budi bicara” (discretion) applies to two people – the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and the attorney-general – whose decisions cannot be questioned.
“Why? Because (according to the Westminster system) the attorney-general is, as people say, the determinant of Malaysia’s peace,” she said during her winding-up speech on the 12MP midterm review today.
“The power given to the attorney-general means he or she can charge anyone, including the prime minister, members of the cabinet, the (Dewan Rakyat) speaker, and the opposition.
“In the constitution, every attorney-general has the power to charge and release (anyone).”
She was responding to Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin (Larut-PN) and Datuk Seri Ronald Kiandee (Beluran-PN) – as both alleged that the charges against opposition leaders were selective prosecution.
Azalina said attorney-generals in the past, such as Tan Sri Tommy Thomas and Tan Sri Idrus Harun, had exercised their discretion as several cases were dropped during their tenure.
She also called out the opposition for not pushing for the separation of the Attorney-General’s Chambers and public prosecutor’s office when it was in federal power.
“When opposition lawmakers get charged, it is selective prosecution. But when this side (unity government) gets charged, it serves us right. What’s the deal?
“Which is why in this issue, we walk the talk. The other side neither walks nor talks,” she said.
Subsequently, Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman (Muar-Muda) told a press conference at the Parliament lobby that the unity government is instead a “Nato” government, which he said stands for “no action, talk only”.
He claimed it was because the government had made multiple promises of instituting reforms that have been indefinitely postponed, such as the promise of allocating funds for opposition lawmakers.
At the same time, Muda secretary-general Amir Hadi was outside the Parliament to deliver a memorandum regarding Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s dismissal not amounting to an acquittal and demanded the government give a clear timeline on the separation of the public prosecutor’s office from the AGC.
Also present were representatives from Parti Sosialis Malaysia and the advocacy group Suara Rakyat Malaysia. – September 18, 2023