Revitalizing, enhancing and strengthening the House of Senate

THE Upper Chamber of the Malaysian Parliament has been plagued with the stigma that it is merely a rubber stamp and that its functions are constantly overlooked. The Senate is more than just an addition to the Legislative organ of the State, it has specific functions as enumerated in the Constitution as part of Federal Legislature with its own set of procedures provided in the Standing Orders. The Senate is often dimmed by that of the House of Representatives owing to the fact that the Senators are not directly elected to office by the people, hence it lacked electoral legitimacy.

On 19th December 2018, the Senate Reform Working Committee (Jawatankuasa Reformasi Dewan Negara) was established with the objective of working towards realizing the aspirations of the Senate. Under the direction and guidance of the then President of the Senate, YB Senator Tan Sri Dato’ Sri SA. Vigneswaran and the leadership of the Chairman of the Senate Reform Working Committee and Senate Caucus, YB Senator Yusmadi Yusoff, the agenda of Senate Reform comes to fruition.

The Senate Reform Working Committee, encompassing representatives across the political divide, through the spirit of non-partisan, focused on making recommendations for the institutional reform of the Senate.

Various stakeholders were involved which included Senators, Speakers and Secretaries of State Legislative Assemblies, academics and NGOs. Discussions and presentations were also conducted on a comparative basis with Canada and Australia, with the attendance of The Honourable George J. Furey Q.C., Speaker of the Senate, Parliament of Canada and Ms. Claresa Surtees, Deputy Clerk of the House of Representatives, Parliament of Australia.

YB Senator Yusmadi Yusoff spearheaded the consultations sessions together with the working committee, which also engages university researchers for their input. The working committee acknowledged the contributions made by Prof. Madya Dr. Rashikah Md. Khalid from UKM, Dr. Mahyuddin Daud from IIUM, Mr. Abdul Mu’iz Abdul Razak from UiTM, Mr. Shamil Norshidi and Mr. Salahuddin Hamzah from Centre for Governance and Political Studies. The framework of the research has been carefully deliberated together with YB Senator Yusmadi Yusoff to ensure that the research analysis and findings do not deviate from the objectives of the Senate Reform Working Committee.

The Senate Reform Working Committee centred their research and recommendations on four Terms of References, which are summarized below.

Firstly, strengthening the role of the Senate and Senators. The Senate Reform Committee reiterate the objective of the creation of the Upper Chamber as provided in the Reid Commission, specifically paragraph 64, which envisioned the Senate to be an influential forum of debate and discussion coupled with valuable revision and to delay legislations in exceptional cases.

The Senate Reform Committee agreed and proposed that there should be a mechanism to ensure independence of the Senators despite their being there are based on political appointments. They should make a declaration of their independence from their political masters so that whatever discussions in the Senate is not an extension of political ideologies.

Secondly, reinstating the Parliamentary Services Act 1963. The repealing of the Parliamentary Services Act in 1992 resulted in the legislature being categorised as a civil service and their budget is at the discretion of the Treasury, hence under the control of the Executive. This move was counterproductive as it goes against the doctrine of separation of powers and parliamentary sovereignty and ultimately affected the independence of the Parliament.

The Senate Reform Working Committee made a comparison with Australia’s Parliamentary Services Act 1999 and found some guidance which can be emulated here. Their version established a non-partisan Parliamentary Service, with its own legal framework of employing and appointing employees. It is a statutory requirement that the Members of Parliament should be committed to the service, be ethical, respectful, accountable, and impartial. Failure to do so would amount to breaking the law.

In the Malaysian context, reinstating the Parliamentary Services Act would restore dignity of the Parliament, and by extension, the Senate. Parliament as the legislative organ of the nation should be able to conduct its duties and responsibilities without directive from the executive.

Thirdly, improvements of the Senate institutional structure. Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz, in a closed roundtable discussion highlighted that the role of the Senate in law-making process is limited. Reference to Articles 67 and 68 underlined constitutional restraints in that the Senate is only to delay bills; six months for money bills and twelve months for non-money bills. These provisions are required to be amended to foster proper checks and balances, to dispel the appearance that the Senate is on the whim of the Dewan Rakyat.

The Senate Reform Working Committee proposed that there should be a specific procedure to ensure appointment of Senators is on the basis of merits, after looking at how appointments are made in Australia and Canada which have an independent Appointment Committee.

There should also be Standing Committees in the Senate to review specific issues in the country, and this body could be endowed with powers to summon a Minister, for example, to justify certain policies.

The short term of three years for the Senators must also be given a considerable thought. An extension of that period could ensure familiarization of the Senate environment which is different from the House of Representatives.

Inclusivity, from the perspective of women representation in the Senate should be vigorously considered. This is in line with developed countries. Empowering women would have a direct effect on politics, economies, society, and the culture.

Fourthly, the rebranding of the Senate in the local mould and this can be done through various programmes including advocacy and public awareness. The Federal Constitution provided that the composition of the Senate should be comprised of professionals. However, current situation in the Senate is seen to be filled with political appointees, resulting in the perception that it is fulfilling political agenda.

The Senate is the penultimate stage before any Bills are presented to His Majesty the King. However, lack of cohesive debates paints a picture that the Senate is not an effective “revising and delaying power” as envisaged in the Reid Commission.

Select Committees can be established for specific matters which require long term monitoring, for example housing, cost of living, foreign affairs, national unity and Bumiputera issues.

Lack of awareness of the actual and enhanced role of the Senate among the people should be addressed. This can be remedied through substantive engagement with the public.

The Malaysian House of Senate has its own autochthonous characteristics, but that does not mean that it could not be enhanced. Realizing Senate Reform will not happen overnight, and the efforts would be hindered if the work stop short, without the collaboration from various stakeholders. It is the view of the Senate Reform Working Committee led by YB Senator Yusmadi Yusoff that the agenda of revitalizing, enhancing, and strengthening the House of Senate is a continuous effort to ensure its sustainability.

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* Abdul Mu’iz Abdul Razak is Lecturer, Faculty of Law, Universiti Teknologi Mara and Member of the Senate Reform Committee.

**The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of Astro AWANI.