Parliamentary Panel To Determine If Bersih Broke Embargo Order

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The government has tabled a motion to seek the Dewan Rakyat's approval to probe Bersih for breaking the embargo on the 2017 Sabah redelineation report by revealing the content a day before the report was tabled in the House
The motion is listed as item number six in the Dewan Rakyat's Order Paper for today, the last day of Parliament's sitting this session
It is expected that the government will seek the approval of the House on the motion
Under the motion, a committee will be entrusted to determine if the Sabah redelineation report and two other relevant reports indeed were 'embargo' documents until they were tabled in the Dewan Rakyat on July 17
The committee will also identify if any individual broke the embargo order.If the order was found to have been broken, the committee headed by Dewan Rakyat Speaker Mohamed Ariff Md Yusof will take the appropriate action, as per the House of Parliament (Privileges and Powers) Act 1952
On July 9, Bersih urged the embargo on the relevant reports to be lifted so that the public would not be kept in the dark
The electoral reform group stressed that the people should have been informed of the contents of the delineation review report before the MPs voted on it
It added in a statement: "Bersih expresses deep disappointment that its call on July 9 for the embargo to be lifted was ignored and that the public is kept in the dark on this important decision, as no media could report on the report."However, the demand of the electoral watchdog was not heeded
On July 16, one day before the Sabah redelineation report was tabled in the Dewan Rakyat and the motion debated in the House, Bersih revealed the contents of the report
For breaking the embargo, the group said it would pay the RM1,000 fine to the Dewan Rakyat Speaker's Office
Yesterday, the Dewan Rakyat passed the motion to increase the state seats in Sabah by 13, to 73
Other than the speaker, the parliamentary committee comprises Md Farid Md Rafik (Harapan-Tanjung Piai), Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin (Harapan-Hang Tuah Jaya), V Sivakumar (Harapan-Batu Gajah), Ahmad Hassan (Warisan-Papar)
Opposition leader Ismail Sabri Yaakob (BN-Bera) and his ally Mohd Khairuddin Aman Razali (PAS-Kuala Nerus) will also sit in the committee. - Mkini

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