Third session of 15th Parliament adjourns sine die after passing 25 bills, including Budget 2025

The 2025 budget, tabled by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Oct 18 and involved the largest allocation in the country's history, amounting to RM421 billion, was discussed at the policy and committee level for almost seven weeks.

It was passed by the August House on Dec 3 after receiving the support of the majority of the Members of Parliament.

The budget is the third under the MADANI government and the last under the 12th Malaysia Plan (2021-2025) before transitioning to the 13th Malaysia Plan for the next five years.

Among the bills passed are the Communications and Multimedia (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Online Safety Bill 2024, the Data Sharing Bill 2024, the Penal Code (Amendment) (No.2) Bill 2024, the Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2024, National Wages Consultation Council (Amendment) Bill 2024 and the Water Services Industry (Amendment) Bill 2024.

The August House also passed the Labour Ordinance of Sabah (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Labour Ordinance of Sarawak (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Trustee (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Legal Profession (Amendment) Bill 2024 and the Commercial Vehicles Licensing Board (Amendment) Bill 2024.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (Amendment) Bill 2024 has been postponed.

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said the bill will be referred to the Special Select Committee (JKPK) on Infrastructure, Transport and Communications and the JKPK on Human Rights, Elections and Institutional Reform to get views and suggestions for improvement.

The Mufti (Federal Territories) Bill 2024, which was scheduled for its second reading during this session, was also deferred to the next parliamentary sitting.

First introduced last July, the bill seeks to provide legal provisions related to the role of the mufti and the determination of matters concerning Shariah law and doctrine.

The bill, tabled for the first reading last July, aims to, among other things, set provisions concerning mufti and address matters related to Islamic law and doctrine. It outlines the roles and functions of the mufti in assisting and advising the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on matters of Islamic law, establishing procedures for issuing fatwas, offering legal opinions in court, and determining the direction of the Qibla (the direction for prayer).

In addition, two bills were tabled for the first reading, namely the Malaysian Media Council Bill 2024 to establish a self-regulatory body and the BERNAMA (Amendment) Bill 2024 which, among other things, is to make the media industry more inclusive.

Deputy Minister of Communications Teo Nie Ching, who tabled the two bills, said that the bills would be tabled for a second reading at the next Dewan Rakyat meeting.

This Parliament session also marked a significant milestone in institutional reform. For the first time, the chairmen of the Special Select Committees (JKPK) were given the platform to present and explain their respective committee statements.

The Special Select Committee on Domestic Trade, Entrepreneurship, Cost of Living and Agriculture, as well as the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) tabled their respective statements.

Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul said the session was held to enhance public understanding of the JKPK's functions and roles in addressing current issues.

It also witnessed the tabling of the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report on the handling of matters related to the sovereignty of Batu Puteh, Middle Rocks, and South Ledge, which demonstrated the transparency of the MADANI government.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said when winding up the debate session on the motion said it was to enable the government to make recommendations and decisions to improve the weaknesses concerning the Batu Puteh, Batuan Tengah and Tubir Selatan issues.

Another notable incident was the suspension of Pendang Member of Parliament Datuk Awang Hashim from attending the Dewan Rakyat for 10 days starting Dec 5, following a controversial statement he made against the Speaker on the TikTok platform on July 18.

Johari explained that the decision was made after multiple efforts to seek an apology and retraction from Awang, including a letter sent on July 22, were ignored.

-- BERNAMA