In the first part of his interview last week, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia talked about the speaker’s impartiality and dealing with accusations of bias. In part two, he discusses improvements for Malaysia’s Parliament, and the realities of local parliamentary and political culture. TNG: In line with other advanced parliamentary systems, what […]
shadow cabinet
Uncommon Sense with Wong Chin Huat: The return of BN?
THE Barisan Nasional (BN) has recently emerged triumphant from two by-election victories in Kerdau and Merlimau, its fourth and fifth consecutive victories so far. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has said the wins showed the people’s growing support for the BN. Can these BN achievements be interpreted as such? And what does this mean […]
“PR needs to formalise its coalition”
PETALING JAYA, 25 June 2009: Pakatan Rakyat needs to, among others, form a shadow cabinet in order for Malaysia to start having a two-party system, a political scientist said. Monash University Sunway Campus’s Prof Dr James Chin said Pakatan Rakyat (PR) had to first formalise itself as a coalition before talk about Malaysia having a […]
Short-sighted politics
The road ahead is long and winding – but who will lead the way? (Background image by Monica Arellano-Ongpin @ Flickr; stop sign images by Mateusz Stachowski /sxc.hu; Najib image public domain, source: Wikimedia commons) SO another by-election is over — the sixth since 2008. Garnering 85% of the total votes cast, Parti Keadilan Rakyat […]
Beyond a shadow of doubt
THE Pakatan Rakyat (PR)’s plan to set up special panels to “shadow” each of Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s cabinet ministries has stirred up debate over whether such a move would serve a real purpose. This arrangement appears superficially similar to the idea of an opposition shadow government that certain quarters have been clamouring for the […]
Where is Anwar’s shadow cabinet?
SINCE the 8 March elections, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has been dubbed a prime minister-in-waiting by many. This never happened with Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Lim Kit Siang, Datuk Fadzil Noor, Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang, or Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah. Such recognition shows how far Malaysia has come in readying for an end to […]
