BN and PAS to back separation of AG’s powers
OPPOSITION MPs from Barisan Nasional and PAS will support Pakatan Harapan’s effort to amend the constitution aimed at separating the powers of the Attorney General (AG) and the Public Prosecutor.
The assurance was given by senior Umno and PAS lawmakers when Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Hanipa Maidin told Parliament there were no plans at the moment to separate the powers.
“At the moment, there is no Cabinet decision to implement the separation of powers of the AG as the government needs a two-thirds majority (in Parliament) to amend the Federal Constitution as required under Article 159(3) for the purpose.
“We do not want to risk tabling the amendment when we do not have the two-thirds majority, but I can’t say when this will happen,” said Hanipa when answering a supplementary question from Datuk Johari Abdul (PH-Sungai Petani).
Johari suggested the government to set up a committee to consider amending the constitution.
“I am sure lawmakers from the opposition will also want to see changes as they have witnessed how a former prime minister escaped being charged owing to conflict of interest,” he said.
Hanipa, who is in charge of law, assured the MPs that the issue of conflict of interest would not arise following the appointment of the AG Tommy Thomas.
“Who would imagine that the former prime minister would be charged in court or that the mastermind was charged in absentia,” Hanipa said.
To this, Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man (PAS-Kubang Kerian) said PAS MPs would support amending the constitution to separate the powers of the AG.
The PAS deputy president, however, reminded Hanipa that the issue was not whether there would be conflict of interest under the present administration but separating the powers of the AG.
Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan (BN-Pontian) said Barisan MPs would also support the effort to amend the constitution.
Pakatan Harapan in its election manifesto had promised to separate the powers of the AG and the Public Prosecutor.